Abstract
Objective
Traumatic primary brainstem hematomas are thought to be a rare phenomenon. The study is to report five cases with review of literatures and to discuss how to write the medical certificates.
Methods
Five cases were retrospectively reviewed, who had not associated intracranial lesions except the hematoma in the brain stem. All cases were analyzed with external wounds, skull fracture, MRI findings, and outcome.
Results
The hematomas occurred in 1 in pons, 2 in midbrain, 1 in thalamus, and 1 in putamen. All of the cases complained of decreased consciousness and denied any neurological symptoms before trauma. Skull fracture was involved only in 2 cases. The finding of MRI revealed signal changes on the corpus callosum compatible with diffuse axonal injury only in 2 cases. Three cases took twice of MRI, which confirmed the hematoma absorbed. The recovery was uneventful and all of them returned to their jobs.
Figures and Tables
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