Traumatismo Cranioencefálico: causas e perfil das vítimas atendidas no pronto-socorro de Pelotas/Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil

O objetivo foi conhecer as causas e o perfil das vitimas com traumatismo cranioencefalico (TCE) atendidas em um Pronto-Socorro da cidade de Pelotas, no Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil. Estudo de carater quantitativo, retrospectivo e descritivo, no qual os dados foram coletados de Fichas de Atendimento (FA) das vitimas de TCE atendidas no ano de 2008. Foram analisadas 496 FAs de vitimas de TCE, com predominio do sexo masculino. A faixa etaria mais acometida foi de zero a 15 anos e a maioria residia no perimetro urbano de Pelotas. Quanto a gravidade, o TCE leve foi mais evidenciado, embora 56,3% das vitimas de TCE nao apresentassem esse registro na FA. Do total da populacao que apresentou TCE ignorado, 36% tinham zero a 15 anos e 28% de 16 a 30 anos. As etiologias predominantes foram as quedas, com 47%, seguidas pelas agressoes, quando comparadas com todas as faixas etarias. A idade mais atingida por TCE foi a de um ano. Percebe-se que o TCE acomete mais as criancas, fato que pode ser explicado pelo comportamento e desenvolvimento infantil e tambem pela supervisao inadequada. Frente aos dados desta pesquisa, e pertinente a elaboracao de um protocolo de atendimento a essas vitimas, realizacao de programas de prevencao e mais estudos sobre o tema. This present study aimed to understand the causes and profile of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) victims attended to at an emergency healthcare clinic in the city of Pelotas, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. This is a quantitative, retrospective, and descriptive study in which the data were collected from Patients Charts (PC) of TBI victims who were treated in 2008. A total of 496 TBI PCs were analyzed, the majority of which were male, with an average of 0 to 15 years of age, who lived in urban areas of Pelotas. As regards severity, light TBI was most commonly observed, although for 56.3% of the TBI victims, this information was not present in their PCs. From the total population whose PC presented an ignored TBI, 36% were between 0 and 15 years of age, while 28% were between 16 and 30. The predominant etiologies, when comparing all age ranges, were falls, at 47%, followed by aggressions. The age most affected by TBI was 1-year-olds. It could be observed that TBI most commonly affects children, a fact that can be explained by infantile behavior and growth, as well as by inadequate supervision. Considering the data from this research, the elaboration of a healthcare protocol for these victims, the creation of prevention programs, and further studies on this issue are warranted.