Emergency treatment guidelines improve survival of people with severe head injury | National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Emergency treatment guidelines improve survival of people with severe head injury | National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Emergency treatment guidelines improve survival of people with severe head injury

Wednesday, May 8, 2019

NIH-funded study shows protocol may help people with severe traumatic brain injury

A large study of more than 21,000 people finds that training emergency medical services (EMS) agencies to implement prehospital guidelines for traumatic brain injury (TBI) may help improve survival in patients with severe head trauma. The findings were published in JAMA Surgery, and the study was supported by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), part of the National Institutes of Health. 

“This demonstrates the significance of conducting studies in real-world settings and brings a strong evidence base to the guidelines,” said Patrick Bellgowan, Ph.D., program director at NINDS. “It suggests we can systematically increase the chances of saving lives of thousands of people who suffer severe traumatic brain injuries.”