Low brain tissue oxygen pressure: Incidence and corrective therapies

AbstractIn 16 head injured patients, the monitoring ofbrain tissue oxygen pressure (ti-pO2) show 22 episodes oflow ti-pO2 (≤12 mmHg). Mean episode duration was 16 h. At time of the lowest ti-pO2 value, cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP), was 0.60) in 3 cases in.cluding 2 cases of impending brain death. A first group of low ti-pO2 episodes was clearly related to an insufficient CPP level (n = 13), comprising 4 cases of parallel decrease in CPP and ti-pO2 until brain death, and 9 cases in which ti-pO2 was restored along with a significant increase in CPP (p<0.001). In 5 patients, low ti-pO2 episodes were due to another cause: vasospasm (2 cases), hypoxemia, anemia and premature inter...