Computed tomographic pattern of traumatic head injury at a tertiary hospital in Ibadan, South-Western Nigeria: A 10 year review

Ademola Joseph Adekanmi, Adenike Temitayo Adeniji-Sofoluwe, Millicent Olubunmi Obajimi

African Journal of Trauma 2015 4(2):45-50

Background: The World Health Organization has projected that by the year 2020, head trauma from Road Traffic Crashes (RTCs) alone will be the 3 rd leading burden of diseases in developing countries. Computed tomography (CT) is the imaging modality of choice in acute traumatic head injury evaluation and provides an excellent guide to the care of the head injured patient. Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the computed tomographic pattern of head injury over a decade. Materials and Methods: This is a 10 year retrospective and descriptive study carried out at the University College Hospital Ibadan, a premier tertiary health institution, which serves as a referral center for cities and towns in South-West Nigeria. All patients with head injury referred to the Radiology Department for cranial CT investigation between January 2003 and December 2012 were recruited into the study. Results: Males accounted for 75.3% of the 2142 head trauma cases with an approximate male to female ratio of 3:1. The mean age of the patients was 34.4 years, and the median age was 32 years (age range: 1-92 years). Patients <39 years accounted for 64.4% of the cases. RTC was the most common etiologic factor accounting for 1,318 head injury cases. Cases due to assault were least seen in 131 (6.3%) of the study population. Abnormal CT findings were present in 77.6% of cases. Intracranial hemorrhage was demonstrated in 1390 patients and was the most common finding. Intraaxial bleeds were present in 60.9%, and the incidence of skull fracture was also high (50.9%). Conclusion: RTC remains the leading cause of head injury but now occurring at an increasing and alarming rate. The most common abnormal CT finding is intraaxial bleeds, followed by skull fractures and extraaxial bleed in decreasing order. A combination of these findings was also frequently recorded.

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