Anaesthesia considerations for head trauma patients

Learning Outcomes

• Understand the basics of intracranial pressure and why it is important

• Be able to recognise Cushing’s reflex/response in a head trauma patient

• Be aware of other anaesthetic considerations for these patients

Head trauma is a strong term conjuring up images of cats who’ve hit the ground face first, but many of our patients may suffer from head trauma – RTAs, animal attacks, etc. Many of these patients will require a general anaesthetic for diagnostics and treatment, and in this presentation we’ll go through some of the things we should consider as nurses when anaesthetising and monitoring these patients. You’ll learn about intracranial pressure, why it’s important and how to keep an eye on it, alongside parameters we should be observing to keep these poorly patients as stable as possible.

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