Intracranial lesions - A comparative analysis of CT and autopsy findings in fatal head injuries

Modern advances in medicine have brought to the care of the seriously injured a remarkable degree of accuracy in diagnosis and success in treatment. Computed Tomography (CT) is the method of choice for the diagnosis and treatment of traumatic head injuries and postmortem examination is one of the finest tools for quality assessment and in evaluation of medical diagnosis and treatment. The study compares the autopsy findings and CT diagnosis with regard to intracranial lesions sustained in fatal head injuries. The present prospective research spanned over a period of three years from January 1998 through December 2000 and included 76 cases of fatal head injuries. The study reveals that fatal head injuries are more common amongst males in the third decade of life. Road traffic mishaps remain the most common cause of fatal head injuries. The study finds discrepancies between CT and autopsy findings with regard to intracranial lesions. CT scan in the present study has failed to provide 100% accuracy in its diagnostic value.