Comparison of the values of basic fibroblast growth factor determined by an immunoassay in the sera of patients with traumatic brain injury and enhanced osteogenesis and the effects of the same sera on the fibroblast growth in vitro.

In patients with severe traumatic brain injury, the early healing of fractures is accompanied by hypertrophic callus formation or heterotopic ossifications, which might even result in ankylosis of the affected joints. Analysis of the sera of patients with traumatic brain injury revealed post-traumatic dynamic changes of basic fibroblast growth factor immunoreactivity, similar to those observed during fracture healing associated with enhanced osteogenesis. The aim of this study was to determine whether such changes in basic fibroblast growth factor concentrations could be related to the phenomenon of enhanced osteogenesis. Basic fibroblast growth factor immunoreactivity was determined (using an IEMA kit) in the sera of patients with traumatic brain injury and bone fractures (n = 8) and in the sera of patients with either traumatic brain injury alone (n = 10) or bone fractures alone (n = 7), and the effects of these sera on L929 fibroblast growth were analysed in vitro. The results did not prove a causative relationship between the changes of basic fibroblast growth factor immunoreactivity and in vitro growth promoting effects of the sera. However, it is apparent that, in addition to changes in the growth-promoting activity and basic fibroblast growth factor concentration of serum, other as yet unknown post-traumatic changes can cause enhanced osteogenesis.