The trauma lethal triad as a predictor of death in major trauma patients

Consideraciones sobre la tríada letal para predecir mortalidad en pacientes con trauma mayor

Introduction: trauma is considered a public health problem, and mortality rate is the main indicator of its magnitude. Clinical recognition of the lethal triad components is relevant as a predictor of death in major trauma patients. Objective: to determine the operative features of the lethal triad in patients admitted to the emergency services of the San José and Infantil Universitario de San José Hospitals in Bogota with major trauma injuries, from January 2012 to December 2017, to estimate the probability of death. Methods: a case and control study of results in diagnostic tests during said period in order to evaluate mortality rate in severe cranioencephalic trauma patients. Results: 500 cases were included; the predominant characteristics were brain trauma in 74% of deceased patients and 43.8% of survivors, moderate hypothermia (equal or < 36°C) was evidenced in 98.2% among survivors and in 96% of non-survivors and acidosis in 2.7% of those who survived and 68% of those who died. This lethal triad had a sensibility and specificity of 0.02 and 1, with negative predictive values of 1 and 0.90. Conclusion: The sensitivity of the lethal triad was less than that reported in the literature and specificity was greater with high predictive values, thus it was considered that the triad was non determinant in the mortality rate of severe trauma patients.

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