The level of serum osmolarity at admission in prognosis of nosocomial mortality in patients with severe brain trauma

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a leading cause of death among patients in developed countries. The patients’ prognosis depends on the trauma‑induced primary damage as well as the secondary brain damage, including electrolyte disturbances. Therefore, prevention, diagnosis, and timely treatment lead to better prognosis. Herein, the aim is to prognosticate about the mortality in patients with TBI through serum osmolarity at admission.

In this cross‑sectional study, 141 patients with TBI were assigned through convenience sampling. The level of serum osmolarity was examined once the patients were admitted to emergency department and later, the outcome was recorded. Finally, we analyzed the relationship between osmolarity level and patient outcome in age groups.

The mean serum osmolarity in the age group of under 18 years, 18 to 60 years, and more than 60 years was equal to 295.3 ± 10.02 mOsm/L, 297.2 ± 6.5 mOsm/L, and 301.6 ± 7.6 mOsm/L, respectively (P‑value <0.001). Osmolarity with a cut‑off point of more than 298.90 and sensitivity and specificity of 70.49 and 62.86, respectively, had appropriate diagnostic value for predicting mortality in these patients (P‑value <0.001).

According to the results of this study, serum osmolarity can have an appropriate diagnostic value in predicting mortality in patients with TBI. In addition, in different age categories, the osmolarity serum in the mortality of these patients was significantly different. Therefore, due to the high importance of serum osmolarity in the mortality of patients, careful monitoring of fluid therapy status of trauma patients should be implemented to prevent the development of hyperosmolarity for the patient with irreversible outcomes.