J Korean Neurosurg Soc.  1992 Sep;21(9):1080-1087.

The Use of Urokinase in Treatment of Epidural Hematoma

• Cho JH
• Kang DG
• Lee CR
• Kim SC

Abstract

The treatment of epidural hematoma is operative or conservative and sometimes, the choice of the method is somewhat controversial. Traditional operative method is craniotomy or craniectomy. 34 patients treated surgically with burr hole trephination and urokinase irrigation at Taegu Fatima hospital between Jan 1989 and Mar 1991 are reviewed in point of clinical features, brain computerized tomography findings and outcomes. And we found several advantages in this method compared to conservative or traditional operative method. Advantages of this method were as follows: 1) It was simple. 2) It enabled us to operate under local anesthesia. 3) It was possible to reduce the rate of delayed intracranial hematoma and rebleeding. 4) It was possible to prevent air embolism. 5) Possible seizure focus was removed. But, there were disadvantages as follows: 1) There was difficulty in early ambulation. 2) Much effort to irrigate the hematoma was required.

Keyword

Epidural hematoma; Urokinase; Burr hole

MeSH Terms

Anesthesia, Local
Brain
Craniotomy
Daegu
Early Ambulation
Embolism, Air
Hematoma*
Humans
Seizures
Trephining
Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator*
Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator