Prevalence and pattern of basal skull fracture in head injury patients in an academic hospital

Abstract

BackgroundBasal skull fractures (BSFs) have been reported to be a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the literature, particularly in young male patients. However, there are limited data available on the aetiology, prevalence and patterns of such observed in South Africa.ObjectivesTo evaluate the prevalence and pattern of BSF in head injury patients referred to Dr George Mukhari Academic Hospital, Gauteng, South Africa.MethodsPatients of all ages with head injuries were considered for the study, and those who met the inclusion criteria were scanned using a 128-slice multidetector helical computed tomography (CT) machine after obtaining consent. Data were prospectively obtained over a 6-month period, interpreted on an advanced workstation by two readers and statistically analysed.ResultsThe prevalence of BSF in this study was found to be 15.2%. The majority of patients (80.5%) were under 40 years old, with a male to female ratio of 3:1. The most common aetiology of BSF was assault, which accounted for 46% of cases. The middle cranial fossa was the most frequently fractured compartment, while the petrous bone was the most commonly fractured bone. There was a statistically significant association between head injury severity and BSF, and between the number of fracture lines and associated signs of BSF (p < 0.001). The sensitivity of clinical signs in predicting BSF was 31%, while specificity was 89.3% (p = 0.004).ConclusionThe prevalence and pattern of BSF found were consistent with data from previously published studies, although, dissimilarly, assault was found to be the most common aetiology in this study.

Temporal bone pneumatization: A scoping review on the growth and size of mastoid air cell system with age

“…The pneumatization of temporal bone serves as a prognostic factor in middle ear surgery and could be considered once related surgeries are planned [ 7 – 9 ]. Temporal bone pneumatization has also been reported to give a protective function, acting as a shock absorber in patients with lateral skull-based fracture and traumatic brain injury [ 10 , 11 ], which have had a devastating impact on many individuals, approximately 69 million individuals worldwide and affect a significant number of people in South Africa [ 12 , 13 ]. However, minimal pneumatization of the temporal bone is a characteristic of otitis media [ 14 , 15 ], which is one of the global burdens of disease [ 16 – 20 ], and significantly high in South Africa among younger children and older children with prevalence of 31.4% and 16.7% respectively [ 21 , 22 ].…”

Characteristics and clinical findings of traumatic brain injury patients in single referral hospital dr. Hasan Sadikin hospital, Bandung, West Java, Indonesia

“…A similar result was also reported in the literature that cerebral contusion was commonly observed in patients with TBI (40.8%) in 2013. 11 In this study, the mean of GCS in the patients with alcohol intoxication was lower than in the patients without alcohol intoxication. A previous study conducted on 108,929 accidents involving alcohol showed that alcohol intoxication did not significantly reduce GCS in patients with TBI at a young age.…”

The Incidence Rate of Cranii Base Fracture in Dr. Kariadi Hospital Semarang Period 2019

“…This differs from a study conducted by Makolene et al, where it was found that the cranii base fracture of the middle fossa was the most common cranii base compartment followed by the cranii base fracture of the anterior fossa, with base fractures of the posterior cranii recording the least number of fractures. 21 This can be explained by referring to a previous study by Pandhika, where based on the cause, 92% of the head trauma was caused by traffic accidents. 20 Furthermore, the location of the impact in cases of head injury tended to be from the side or the front.…”