Citation

Kelmendi FM, Morina AA, Mekaj AY, Dragusha S, Ahmeti F, Alimehmeti R, Morina Q, Berisha M, Krasniqi B, Kerolli B. Br. J. Neurosurg. 2021; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/02688697.2021.1878487

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Among children who sustain mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), 10-30% develop a cluster of cognitive, physical, and emotional symptoms commonly referred to as post-concussion syndrome (PCS). Symptoms typically resolve within 7-10 days, but a minority of patients report symptoms that persist for months or even years. The aim of our study was to identify a neurobiochemical marker after mTBI that can predict the presence of post-concussion syndrome three months after head injury in paediatric patients.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Children between 7 and 16 years of age who had head trauma and no other complaints were included. Three months after the initial visit, participants or parents/guardians were interviewed in person about the children's PCS symptoms using the Rivermead Post-Concussion Symptoms Questionnaire (RPQ).

RESULTS: The mean value of S100B protein in serum in 38 patients without signs of PCS was 0.266 μg L(-1), with a 95% confidence interval (CI) of 0.221 - 0.310 μg L(-1). Among the 22 patients with signs of PCS, the mean value of S100B protein in serum was 0.845 μg L(-1), with a 95% CI of 0.745-0.945 μg L(-1). Patients with signs of PCS had higher S100B protein levels than those without signs of PCS (p < 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS: Our prospective study showed that S100B protein is a useful neurobiomarker for detecting paediatric patients at risk for post-concussion syndrome. We found that the biomarker S100B correlated with the severity of traumatic brain injury (number of lesions on CT) and the presence of post-concussion syndrome.

Language: en

Keywords

mild traumatic brain injury; Post-concussion syndrome; head CT; paediatric population