• W G Baxt, G Jones, and D Fortlage.
• Department of Emergency Medicine, UCSD Medical Center 92103-1990.
• Ann Emerg Med. 1990 Dec 1;19(12):1401-6.

Study ObjectiveTo develop a new trauma decision rule.DesignRetrospective clinical review.SettingLevel I trauma center.Type Of Participants1,004 injured adults.Measurements And Main ResultsA new trauma decision rule was derived from 1,004 injured adult patients using a new operational definition of major trauma. The rule, termed the Trauma Triage Rule, defines a major trauma victim as any injured adult patient whose systolic blood pressure is less than 85 mm Hg; whose motor component of the Glasgow Coma Score is less than 5; or who has sustained penetrating trauma of the head, neck, or trunk. Using the operational definition of major trauma, the rule had a sensitivity of 92% and a specificity of 92% when tested on the 1,004-patient cohort.ConclusionThe Trauma Triage Rule may significantly reduce overtriage while only minimally increasing undertriage. This approach must be validated prospectively before it can be used in the prehospital setting.

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