• Adilson J M de Oliveira and Paulo N Solari.
• Neurosurgery Service, Clinica Girassol, Luanda, Angola; Nucleo de insvestigação dos estudantes de saude, Agostinho Neto University, Luanda, Angola. Electronic address: adilsonvalmont@gmail.com.
• World Neurosurg. 2020 Nov 1; 143: e362-e364.

BackgroundTraumatic brain injury (TBI) is a global problem and is the greatest contributor to death and disability among all trauma-related injuries worldwide. Road traffic accidents are an important cause of TBI. The purpose of this paper is to present the first data on TBI in Angola.MethodsThis was a retrospective study of the clinical and radiologic profile of patients admitted to the intensive care unit of a tertiary hospital in Luanda, Angola, from January 2018 to December 2018. The medical records of patients with moderate and severe TBI admitted to the intensive care unit were reviewed. The inclusion criteria were adult patients who suffered from TBI. The exclusion criteria were incomplete medical records, pediatric age, and mild TBI.ResultsWe included 29 patients (6 female) with a mean age of 31 years. Of them, 31% visited the hospital without an ambulance (using private or commercial vehicles), 58.6% suffered from severe TBI, and the mortality rate in our sample was 34.5%. Road accident was the most frequent cause of trauma.ConclusionsThis first report of TBI in Angola reveals major problems with TBI management, road accident prevention, prehospital management, and loss of lives of young patients.Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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