Time courses of the traumatic intracerebral hematomas

This paper deals with a CT study of acute traumatic intracerebral hematoma in a series of 36 cases admitted to our hospital during the period of two years from June, 1977. More than two sequential CT examinations at short intervals from 15 minutes to 48 hours were performed on 23 patients. In 15 patients CT study was carried out within two hours following trauma. Acute traumatic intracerebral hematomas can be classified into two groups based upon the findings of the sequential CT. The first group is characterized by the rapid growth or enlargement of hematoma, and the second, by the slow growth. The rapidly enlarging hematomas are caused by arterial rupture at the time of trauma or within a few hours. The slowly enlarging hematomas develop as a result of hemorrhage in the area of cerebral contusion within 48 hours after trauma and continue to enlarge for several days - 3 days on the average. (author)