Multimodality monitoring and the diagnosis of traumatic caroticocavernous fistula following head injury

Increases in jugular bulb saturations (SjO(2)) following head injury are us ually due to hyperaemia. Less commonly this may be due to the development o f an arteriovenous fistula. We describe how SjO(2) monitoring can be used i n conjunction with transcranial Doppler ultrasound to make the distinction between these two conditions, which require distinct therapies. Multimodali ty monitoring in acute injury provides information regarding underlying pat hophysiology and permits individualization of therapy.