Prognostic Factors to Reduce ICU Overtriage in Elderly Patients with Isolated Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

Abstract

Introduction : Elderly patients with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) are frequently admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU), which is potentially both harmful and unnecessary. It is not known which patients may be safely observed in a non-ICU setting, potentially improving ICU utilization. The purpose of this study was to identify factors that predict which geriatric patients with traumatic brain injury may be admitted to a level of care other than the I CU. Methods : Adults ≥65+ years admitted with positive radiologic stud y demonstrating isolated mTBI (defined as Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) 13 - 15) that was initially managed nonoperatively between January 2011 - December 2016 were identified. Primary outcomes evaluated included over triage and Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS). Results : 207 were identified. Most patients presented with GCS 15 (77.8%) and were admitted to ICU (85.5%). 27% (n = 55) met overtriage criteria. The most common TBI was subdural hemorrhage (SDH) (48.8%) followed by subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) (22.2%). Hemorrhage progression developed in 8.7% of subjects, but there was no difference across TBI type. 21.7% of patients developed a ≥2 point decrease in GCS during their hospital stay. Upon discharge, 89.9% had a GOS ≥ 4 - 5. Presence/type of a single intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) was not significantly associated with outcome, but presence of bilateral or multiple lesions was significantly associated with poor outcome (p = 0.04). Conclusions : Overtriage of patients to an ICU is costly, resource intensive, and avoidable. Here, we suggest a conservative framework to assist the determination of which patients can be safely observed in non-ICU setting. Future studies should determine if this framework is generalizable to the entire geriatric population who present with mTBI.