THE ABBREVIATED INJURY SCALE - A VALUABLE TOOL FOR FORENSIC DOCUMENTATION OF TRAUMA

Anatomic trauma scoring systems are fundamental to trauma research. Th e Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) and its derivative, the Injury Severi ty Score (TSS), are the most frequently used scales. We assessed the a pplicability of the AIS and the ISS systems for postmortem forensic do cumentation of trauma. In a prospective study, all trauma autopsies pe rformed between January 1 and June 30, 1993, were coded according to t he AIS and ISS method. All cases were reviewed by a consultant in fore nsic medicine and a traumatologist. Cases were grouped in three catego ries according to ISS values: 0-14, 16-66, and 75. These categories re present minor, major, and incompatible-with-life injuries, respectivel y. All autopsy findings in which ISS was less than or equal to 14 were peer-reviewed to establish mechanism and cause of death. Ln the 6-mon th period, 279 trauma-related autopsies were studied. Age at death ave raged 37.1 +/- 18.7 (mean +/- SD). Eighty-six percent of the victims w ere male. Penetrating trauma was the mechanism of injury in 67%. ISS w as 0-14 in 19 cases, 16-66 in 150 cases, and 75 in 110 cases. In concl usion, AIS and ISS scoring systems are applicable to trauma forensic d ocumentation. Using these methods for coding postmortem findings may h elp in establishing a database for trauma research, and this informati on could constitute a major part of continuous quality improvement of trauma management. Low ISS values may serve as a warning, sometimes in dicating preventable death.