Stress hyperglycemia and glycemic control in critical neurosurgical patients: A retrospective study

Abstract

Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the rate of stress hyperglycemia (SH) in non-diabetic critical neurosurgical patients and the effect of SH on patient outcomes, and to evaluate the glycemic control protocol applied in the neurosurgical intensive care unit (ICU).Material and Methods: The sample of this retrospective study was the files of patients who had been admitted for at least three days to the neurosurgical ICU of a university hospital in Istanbul, Turkey, who were not diabetic, and who were aged 18 years or more. Data collection was performed with a data collection form developed by the researchers in line with the literature, and by examining thepatients’ files. Before commencing the study, permission was obtained from the ethics committee.Results: The mean age of the patients was 55.74 years, and a majority (62.2%) was male. SH was seen in 47.7% of the patients. The rate of SH was significantly higher in those with a Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score of below 13 and in those with intracranial hematoma or traumatic brain injury (p