ABSTRACT

It is unclear whether emergency severity index (ESI) is valid to triage patients with trauma. We aimed to determine the accuracy of ESI in both prehospital and hospital settings.

This study was an observational prospective cohort where in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) were followed from the accident scene to the hospital. Used resources and timing indices were collected both on the scene as well as at the hospital. A logistic regression was performed to ascertain the effects of clinical parameters on the likelihood of survival of patients with TBI regarding 24 hour mortality.

A total of 185 patients were included in this study. The mortality rate was 14% (25/185). The logistic regression model was statistically significant at χ2=57.8, p=0.001. An enter logistic regression analysis showed that used resources either in prehospital or in hospital significantly improved predictions related to mortality. The model explained the 49% variance in survival of patients with TBI.

The ESI-used resources can be used to triage patients with TBI for pre-hospital and hospital emergency care. It is recommended that ESI triage tool be used to triage patients with TBI.

Keywords: Traumatic brain injury, emergency severity index, triage, prehospital emergency