Intracranial Pressure Monitoring in Sever Traumatic Brain Injury Single Centre Experience

ICP >15 mmHg is considered to be elevated, and this is considered an important cause of secondary injury leading to irreversible brain injury and death. ICP monitoring is used in a number of conditions; traumatic brain injury, intracerebral haemorrhage, subarachnoid haemorrhage, hydrocephalus, malignant infarction, cerebral oedema, CNS infections, hepatic encephalopathy, to name a few, and in all of these conditions ICP monitoring in the light of other parameters can influence management for better outcomes.

There are 4 ways to monitor intracranial pressure:

1. An intra-parenchymal method, the catheter is placed into the brain parenchyma through a burr hole; it has a lower complication rate, lower infection rate, and no chance of catheter occlusion or leakage. Neurological injury is minimized because of the small diameter of the probe. In addition, malposition of the transducer has less impact on errors of measurement.
2. An intra-ventricular method, the catheter is placed into one of the ventricles (lat. Ventricle). The catheter can also be used for therapeutic CSF drainage and for administration of drugs.
3. Subdural method, this method is used if monitoring needs to be done right away. A hollow screw is inserted through a burr hole and placed through the Dura mater.
4. An epidural sensor is inserted between the skull and dural tissue. This procedure is less invasive than other methods.

ICP monitoring methods is associated with a number of complications. These include risk of infection, haemorrhage, obstruction, difficulty in placement, malposition, etc.

The use of an ICP monitor is associated with significantly lower mortality when compared with patients treated without an ICP monitor