Critical care management of severe head injury

Severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. The intensive care management of TBI requires a coordinated and comprehensive approach to treatment, including strategies to prevent secondary brain injury by avoidance of systemic physiological disturbances, such as hypotension, hypoxaemia, hypoglycaemia, hyperglycaemia and hyperthermia, and maintenance of adequate cerebral perfusion and oxygenation. There have been marked improvements in the management of patients with severe TBI over the last two decades, and treatment advances in the pre-hospital setting and emergency department have recently extended into the intensive care unit. The management of head injury has undergone extensive revision as evidence accumulates that established practices are not as effective or innocuous as previously believed. Management protocols have evolved with international consensus, providing guidelines that assist clinicians in delivering optimal care. Improved diagnostic and monitoring modalities are improving the understanding of the pathophysiology of head injury and allowing the delivery of individualised therapy.