A BSTRACT Background: The study aimed to use the Thoracic Trauma Severity Score to predict Emergency Department outcomes, hospital stays, and Intensive Care Unit (ICU) stays for patients with primary thoracic trauma, considering its significant risk to morbidity and mortality. Patients and Methods: This prospective observational cohort study was conducted at a level I trauma center in Southern India over seven months. The Thoracic Trauma Severity Score and other determinants were categorized, coded, and analyzed. Results: In this study, 65 patients with blunt thoracic trauma were included, with a mean age of 44.40 (Standard Deviation: 15.5) years and a predominance of male gender ( n = 59, 90.8%). Two-wheeler-related incidents had been the most common ( n = 48; 73.9%), followed by 4-wheeler-related incidents ( n = 9; 13.9%). Approximately one-third of the patients ( n = 21; 32.3%) had experienced severe hemodynamic compromise, requiring immediate resuscitation. The distribution of Thoracic Trauma Severity Score scores had shown that the majority of victims had fallen into groups I and II. Area Under Curve (AUC) plot analysis revealed significant correlations between the Thoracic Trauma Severity Score and both the duration of Intensive Care Unit stay ( P = 0.032) and hospital stay ( P = 0.003). However, no meaningful cut-off points had been found to correlate the Thoracic Trauma Severity Score and Emergency Department outcome. Conclusion: The study population primarily consisted of middle-aged men involved in two-wheeler-related road traffic accidents. Utilizing the Thoracic Trauma Severity Score allowed for the prediction of the duration of ICU stay and hospital stay, thereby estimating the prognosis for these patients.
Mohideen et al. (Mon,) studied this question.