Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the combined effect of atorvastatin calcium and hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) on postoperative functional recovery in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI). METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 179 TBI patients who underwent surgery at the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical College from March 2021 to October 2024. Patients were divided into two groups. An atorvastatin group (n=87), receiving standard neurosurgical care plus atorvastatin, and a combination group (n=92), receiving atorvastatin and HBOT. Both groups followed a 14-day treatment protocol. Outcomes, including cognitive function, limb performance, quality of life, neurological status, cerebral hemodynamics, and serum biomarkers, were assessed at 7 and 14 days post-treatment. RESULTS: The combination group showed significantly better cognitive scores, higher Fugl-Meyer Assessment scores for both limbs, and improved Quality of Life after Brain Injury scores (all P<0.05). They also demonstrated greater reductions in National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale scores and increases in Glasgow Coma Scale scores (both P<0.001). Brain injury markers were lower in this group (P<0.001), with neuron-specific enolase differing only on Day 7. Hemodynamically, the combination group had higher flow velocity and peak systolic velocity, and lower pulsatility index (all P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Combined atorvastatin and HBOT therapy significantly enhances cognitive and limb recovery, improves neurological outcome, regulates cerebral hemodynamics, and reduces brain tissue damage. Thus, it shows substantial value in early TBI rehabilitation.