Evaluation of blood glucose and inflammation markers in pediatric head injuries

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between early (at the first admission to the emergency room) blood glucose, C-reactive protein (CRP) and leukocyte (WBC) levels and Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) in patients with pediatric isolated head injury (IHI) and to reveal their effects on prognosis in the emergency department.
METHODS: The data of 74 patients with IHI under the age of 18 and over the age of 2, admitted to XXX Hospital Emergency Department between 2016 and 2019, were obtained from the hospital information system and analyzed retrospectively.
RESULTS: It was reported that 54 of our patients were boys and 20 were girls. Concerning injury etiology, it was determined that 21.6% were exposed to head injury due to a traffic accident, 59.5% due to falling, 9.5% due to battery, and the same percentage due to a foreign body hit on the head. According to the severity of brain damage, 65 patients with the GCS score above eight and 9 patients with the GCS score below and equal to eight were identified. While a significant negative correlation was found between the GCS scores and blood glucose and WBC levels of our patients, the difference between the CRP levels was found to be insignificant.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: In children with pediatric IHI, a negative correlation was found between increased blood glucose and WBC levels and GCS score in the early period in predicting the severity of damage in addition to CBT, and it was associated with poor prognosis in the emergency department.