Plasma levels of adrenomedullin in patients with traumatic brain injury: Potential contribution to prognosis

• Plasma adrenomedullin level increased in patients with traumatic brain injury.
• Adrenomedullin could possibly serve as a novel biomarker in traumatic brain injury.
• Adrenomedullin may be a good prognostic factor for 6-month functional outcome and mortality in traumatic brain injury.

High plasma levels of adrenomedullin have been associated with stroke severity and clinical outcomes. This study aimed to analyze plasma levels of adrenomedullin in traumatic brain injury and their association with prognosis. One hundred and forty-eight acute severe traumatic brain injury and 148 sex- and age-matched healthy controls were recruited in this study. Plasma adrenomedullin concentration was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Unfavorable outcome was defined as Glasgow Outcome Scale score of 1–3. Compared to controls, the patients had significantly higher plasma concentrations of adrenomedullin, which were also highly associated negatively with Glasgow Coma Scale score. Plasma adrenomedullin level was proved to be an independent predictor for 6-month mortality and unfavorable outcome of patients in a multivariate analysis. A receiver operating characteristic curve was configured to show that a baseline plasma adrenomedullin level predicted 6-month mortality and unfavorable outcome of patients with high area under curve. The predictive performance of the plasma adrenomedullin concentration was also similar to that of Glasgow Coma Scale score for the prediction of 6-month mortality and unfavorable outcome of patients. In a combined logistic-regression model, adrenomedullin improved the area under curve of Glasgow Coma Scale score for the prediction of 6-month mortality and unfavorable outcome of patients, but the differences did not appear to be statistically significant. Thus, high plasma levels of adrenomedullin are associated with head trauma severity, and may independently predict long-term clinical outcomes of traumatic brain injury.