Prognosis and clinical relevance of anisocoria-craniotomy latency for epidural hematoma in comatose patients.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the time between onset of anisocoria and surgery for hematoma evacuation in the head-injured patient is a useful prognostic variable for outcome in the comatose patient with an acute epidural hematoma.

DESIGN: Prospective.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-one patients with an acute traumatic epidural hematoma and an admission Glasgow Coma Scale score of less than 8 were analyzed.

RESULTS: Anisocoria was present in 14 (67%) patients. Mortality rate was three times higher in this group than in the patients without anisocoria; however, this difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.21, Fisher's exact test). None of the patients with an anisocoria-craniotomy latency of 70 minutes or less died and all of these patients had a good or reasonable outcome. Analysis of the anisocoria-craniotomy latency in ten patients revealed that a lapse of more than 90 minutes was associated with a greater mortality compared with patients with a latency of less than 90 minutes (p = 0.0238, Fisher's exact test).

CONCLUSIONS: In patients with an acute epidural hematoma, reducing the anisocoria-surgery interval below 90 minutes is significantly associated with a better outcome (p = 0.0238, Fisher's exact test).