Table 2.
Summary of clinical data for patients in Group 2 with poor neurologic prognosis (n=18 patients).
| Clinical Studies | Findings |
|---|---|
| Initial head CT, with evidence of cerebral edema (early diffuse) | 6 (33%) |
| EEG | |
| Encephalopathy, nonspecific (moderate - severe) | 18 (100%) |
| Periodic EEG patterns | 7 (39%) |
| MRI, with evidence of diffuse hypoxic ischemic injury | 7 of 8 (88%) |
| SSEP, with total absence of cortical response on both median and posterior tibial stimulation | 3 of 4 (75%) |
| NM-CBF, with no intracranial blood flow | 3 of 3 (100%) |
| NSE (n=5), serum level (ng/mL) | 58.0 (30.5-162.0) |
| Key Exam Findings | |
| Pupillary & corneal reflex (absent or abnormal) | 12 (67%) |
| Myoclonus presence | 10 (56%) |
| Glasgow coma scale | 3 (3-5) |
| Prognosis | |
| Cerebral performance category | |
| (3) Severe cerebral disability | 4 (22%) |
| (4) Coma or vegetative State | 10 (56%) |
| (5) Brain death | 4 (22%) |
| Neurological Prognosis Determination | |
| ICU physician | 18 (100%) |
| Neurologist | 10 (56%) |
| Withdrawal of Care | |
| Rational for Family and Physician Decision | |
| Poor neurologic prognosis | 10 (56%) |
| Poor neurologic and medical prognosis | 3 (17%) |
| Brain death | 4 (22%) |
| Early termination, coinciding with patient’s wishes | 1 (5%) |
| Median time of withdrawal post-cardiac arrest (hour:minute) | 133:57 (95:49-165:00) |
Values are reported as median (interquartile range) for non-parametric continuous variables and N (%) for categorical data. CT – computed tomography. EEG – electroencephalogram. MRI – magnetic resonance imaging. SSEP – somatosensory evoked potential. NM-CBF – nuclear medicine cerebral blood flow. NSE – neuron-specific enolase (reference interval 0.0-16.3 ng/mL).