Epidemiologie des traumatismes cranio-encephaliques a parakou (Benin)

Introduction Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the leading cause of death for traumatic injury. It is an major public health problem. Objective This study aimed to investigate the epidemiology of (TBI) in CHD-Borgou (Benin). Method It was prospective study. A total of TBI from admission to output was collected during the period January 1, 2008 to December 31, 2009. Result Of the 755 (31.9%) total TBI admitted, males were 642 (85%) and females 113 (15%). 87,7% cases resulted from road traffic accident. The mean age was 28.6 years ± 15.4. An risk factor was found in 134(20.3%) cases and Alcohol use was 61,2%. Road crash concerned 492 (74,3%) motorcyclists, 8 (1.2%) cyclist, 119 (18%) pedestrians and 43 (6.5%) motor vehicle occupants. The distribution of head injury severity, on the basis of Glasgow Coma Scale scores, was mild in 482 (63,8%), moderate in 102 (13.5%), and severe in 171 (22.7%) for all cases. TBI was lone in 135 (20.3%) cases. The skull X-rays performed for 414 patients and cerebral CT-Scan for 85. Skull x-ray showed 47 (11.4%) fissure fracture, 38 (9.2%) depressive fracture and 7 (1.7%) pneumocephalus. The most observed brain lesions were the cerebral contusion (30,6%) and hematoma (28.3%).The mean duration of hospitalization was 7.25 days. 674 (89.2%) patients had good recovery. Mortality was 8.5%. Conclusion __ The TBI are a major problem in CHD-Borgou; Prevention of road traffic injuries and improved emergency care and health facility-based treatment is needed. © 2002 African Journal of Neurological Sciences.