Traumatic head injury and pulmonary damage.

Head-injury victims may develop pulmonary complications such as hemorrhagic edema, congestion, and hyperemia. In the present experiments we examined changes in lung surface tension, cholesterol, and phospholipids of alveolar lavage recovered from cats experimentally exposed to a sudden lethal blow to the occiput by captive bolt. Minimum surface tension and cholesterol from traumatized cats which developed convulsive seizures immediately after the blow were more than doubled while no change was seen in traumatized cats without seizures. Total phospholipids and disaturated phosphatidyl choline in either group were not increased over control levels. However, the ratio of cholesterol to total phospholipids increased significantly in traumatized cats with seizures, but did not increase in the cats without seizures. Lung wash protein was higher than in controls in both groups of traumatized cats. This work suggests that at least part of the pulmonary changes following this mechanical head injury may be mediated through a change in the alveolar surface lining.