Biomarker S100B in plasma a screening tool for mild traumatic brain injury in an emergency department

IntroductionA computerized tomography (CT) scan is an effective test for detecting traumatic intracranial findings after mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). However, a head CT is costly, and can only be performed in a hospital.ObjectiveTo determine if the addition of plasma S100B to clinical guidelines could lead to a more selective scanning strategy without compromising safety.MethodsWe conducted a single center prospective cohort study at the emergency department. Patients (>= 16 years) who received head CT and had a blood draw were included. The primary outcome was the accuracy of plasma S100B to predict the presence of any traumatic intracranial lesion on head CT.ResultsWe included 495 patients, out of the 74 patients who had traumatic intracranial lesions, 5 patients had a plasma S100B level below the cutoff value of 0.105 ug/L. For the detection of traumatic intracranial injury, S100B had a sensitivity of 0.932 , a specificity of 0.157, a negative predictive value of 0.930, and a positive predictive value of 0.163.ConclusionsAmong patients undergoing guideline-based CT scan for mTBI, the use of S100B, would results in a further decrease (14.8%) of CT scans but at a cost of missed injury, without clinical consequence, on CT.