• Xuan Hui, Adil H Haider, Zain G Hashmi, Amy P Rushing, Nitasha Dhiman, Valerie K Scott, Shalini Selvarajah, Elliott R Haut, David T Efron, and Eric B Schneider.
• Department of Surgery, Center for Surgical Trials and Outcomes Research, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21287, USA.
• J. Surg. Res. 2013 Sep 1;184(1):438-43.

BackgroundPatients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) frequently require mechanical ventilation (MV). The objective of this study was to examine the association between time spent on MV and the development of pneumonia among patients with TBI.Materials And MethodsPatients older than 18 y with head abbreviated injury scale (AIS) scores coded 1-6 requiring MV in the National Trauma Data Bank 2007-2010 data set were included. The study was limited to hospitals reporting pneumonia cases. AIS scores were calculated using ICDMAP-90 software. Patients with injuries in any other region with AIS score >3, significant burns, or a hospital length of stay >30 d were excluded. A generalized linear model was used to determine the approximate relative risk of developing all-cause pneumonia (aspiration pneumonia, ventilator-associated pneumonia [VAP], and infectious pneumonia identified by the International Classification of Disease, Ninth Revision, diagnosis code) for each day of MV, controlling for age, gender, Glasgow coma scale motor score, comorbidity (Charlson comorbidity index) score, insurance status, and injury type and severity.ResultsAmong the 24,525 patients with TBI who required MV included in this study, 1593 (6.5%) developed all-cause pneumonia. After controlling for demographic and injury factors, each additional day on the ventilator was associated with a 7% increase in the risk of pneumonia (risk ratio 1.07, 95% confidence interval 1.07-1.08).ConclusionsPatients who have sustained TBIs and require MV are at higher risk for VAP than individuals extubated earlier; therefore, shortening MV exposure will likely reduce the risk of VAP. As patients with TBI frequently require MV because of neurologic impairment, it is key to develop aggressive strategies to expedite ventilator independence.Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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