This study was designed to quantify the early neurologic effects of brain injury elicited by fluid percussion to the dura of cats. Propofol was used for surgical anesthesia because recovery in normal animals from an intravenous infusion was found to be nearly complete within 2 h of cessation and absolutely complete by 4 h. In addition, a cat coma scale (CCS) was developed that reflects normal (CCS, 14) to moribund (CCS, 3) behavior. The CCS values at 6 h were compared with the force of injury expressed in atmospheres (atm), maximum blood pressure change, and gross neuropathology to ascertain which parameter might best account for the behavior observed after brain injury. The results showed that decreasing neurologic scores correlated well with increasing atmospheres of injury (Pearson's r 0.71, p < 0.001) but not with the rise in systolic blood pressure caused by the trauma (n = 29). Coma scores did correlate with the cross sectional area of ponto-mesencephalic lesions (Pearson's r = 0.51, p < 0.01) and proved to be significantly different in animals grouped according to lesion size of less or more than 3 mm in length (t test, p < 0.01). Thus the CCS and the pharmacologic properties of propofol permit an early analysis of the neurologic status in the feline fluid percussion model of brain injury. These procedures could facilitate the evaluation of early biochemical changes that affect behavior and of therapies designed to ameliorate the deleterious effects of head injury.

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