Continuous monitoring of intracranial pressure in severe closed head injury without mass lesions.

Intracranial pressure (ICP) was monitored continuously for up to two weeks in 40 patients with severe closed head injury with no angiographic evidence of mass lesion. Two-thirds of these patients had normal pressure. The results indicated that there is a lack of correlation between clinical presentation and ICP. Reliable prognostic factors include clinical evidence of brain stem dysfunction and age, but not intracranial pressure. From the data we have concluded that the clinical value of ICP monitoring in this type of head injury is uncertain.