Ec. Benzel et al., THE SINGLE BURR HOLE TECHNIQUE FOR THE EVACUATION OF NONACUTE SUBDURAL HEMATOMAS, The journal of trauma, injury, infection, and critical care, 36(2), 1994, pp. 190-194
A 4-year retrospective study was made of 111 consecutive surgically tr
eated patients with chronic or subacute subdural hematomas. All underw
ent single burr hole evacuation with accompanying saline irrigation of
the subdural space. Postoperative outcomes at 6 weeks were 90% excell
ent, 5.5% fair, and 4.5% poor. Postoperative re-evacuation was perform
ed either by needle aspiration or reoperation via the burr hole on 12
patients; one required a craniectomy and neomembrane stripping. These
results compare favorably with previous data and support the use of th
e single burr hole technique as a simple and effective treatment of su
bacute and chronic subdural hematomas. This addresses the decompressio
n of the brain parenchyma, the removal of the residual semisolid subdu
ral hematoma component and the removal, dilution, and inactivation of
endogenous fibrinolytic agents.