Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To analyze the influencing factors of postoperative pulmonary infection in patients with severe traumatic brain injury, and establish and validate a column chart prediction model. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted on 314 patients with severe traumatic brain injury in our hospital from January 2022 to March 2024. They were separated into an internal validation group of 235 cases and an external validation group of 79 cases randomly. The internal validation group was grouped into an infection group of 73 cases and an non-infection group of 162 cases. All patients underwent pathogen detection and identification. RESULTS: A total of 96 strains of pathogens were isolated from 73 patients with concurrent pulmonary infections. Independent risk factors for postoperative pulmonary infection in patients with severe TBI included age ≥ 60 years, diabetes, tracheotomy, operation time ≥ 4 hours, sputum excretion in the supine position, mechanical ventilation duration ≥ 7 days, and GCS score < 8 points mechanical ventilation duration (P<0.05). The constructed column chart prediction model had high discrimination, calibration, and clinical practical value. CONCLUSION: The column chart model, incorporating age, diabetes, tracheotomy, operation time, sputum excretion position, mechanical ventilation duration and GCS score, can effectively predict pulmonary infections in severe traumatic brain injury patients.