• Doğa Gürkanlar, Hatice Lakadamyali, Tarkan Ergun, Cem Yilmaz, Engin Yücel, and Nur Altinörs.
• Başkent University, Neurosurgery Department, Ankara, Turkey. dgurkanlar2000@yahoo.co.uk
• Turk Neurosurg. 2009 Jul 1; 19 (3): 211-5.

AimHead trauma is associated with an acute phase response which is characterized by leucocytosis due to increased levels of catecholamine and cortisol. Early edema formation following severe head injury may also be associated with microglia activation. Therefore, increased white blood cell (WBC) count after head trauma may be a predictive parameter of the severity of craniocerebral trauma.Material And MethodsWe retrospectively studied 59 patients with severe, moderate and minor injury between February 2007 and March 2009. WBC counts of all patients were obtained within the first day of their admission. All patients were divided into separate groups according to their Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) scores and hospital stay durations. Their CT progressions and Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) scores were also assessed. The relationship between these parameters and WBC counts were evaluated by statistical methods.ResultsThere was a favorable correlation between WBC counts of the patients and GCS scores (pI0.01), hospital stay (p=0.006), CT progression (p < 0.01) and GOS scores (p < 0.01).ConclusionAWBC count exceeding 17.5 x 106/l has a predictive value for poor GCS score, and long hospital stay. CT progression tends to be seen in patients with moderate and severe head injury.

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