Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is an important public health concern because of the high mortality rate of young people and a high proportion among the trauma. According to studies, patients visiting the emergency department (ED) with TBI comprise 1.4% of all ED patients.

The authors think that the characteristics of patients with TBI will vary according to the age group. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the clinical and social characteristics of patients with TBI visiting the ED by age group.

Trauma patients who conducted brain CT at the ED of Korean University Hospital (three hospitals) for 3 years from March 2013 to February 2016 were enrolled. Medical records were investigated retrospectively. The GCS scores were estimated at initial ED arrival. The primary outcome was to determine the characteristics of each age groups with gender, severity (by GSC score), trauma mechanism, and admission rate.

A total of 15,567 TBI patients received brain CT evaluation during the investigation period. Based on age, patients in their 50s were the most common (16.5%). Regarding the severity, the ratio of mild was higher in under patients under 9 (99.3%); the ratio of severe was higher for patients in their 20s (4.6%). In almost every age group, the male ratio of TBI was higher, except for females aged 70 or older. Under 19 years of age, the ambulance utilization rate was lower than any other age group. The most common injury mechanism was a collision, the next was a traffic accident, and in under 9, a fall was the most common. 70.1% of patients returned home after treatments.

Identifying the characteristics of patients with TBI visiting ED is fundamental. Therefore, it is necessary to continuously collect basic data on TBI among patients visiting the ED.