Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39448905›Full record

ArticleInternational journal of emergency medicine2024

Evaluation of GFAP/UCH-L1 biomarkers for computed tomography exclusion in mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI).

Jacopo M Legramante, Marilena Minieri, Marzia Belli, Alfredo Giovannelli, Alessia Agnoli, Daniela Bajo, Lorenza Bellincampi, Anna Maria De Angelis, Alessandro Terrinoni, Massimo Pieri and 7 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in International journal of emergency medicine, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Impact of routine use of the GFAP and UCH-L1 TBI blood test for management of mild TBI on patient care in a European emergency department.European journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society · 2026
    Article
  2. Blood-based biomarkers GFAP/UCH-L1 for the diagnosis of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI): a single-center implementation experience.European journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society · 2026
    Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

17 authors.

Jacopo M Legramante *Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Marilena Minieri *Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy. minieri@uniroma2.it.
Marzia BelliDepartment of Emergency, University Hospital Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Alfredo GiovannelliUnit of Laboratory Medicine, University Hospital Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Alessia AgnoliUnit of Laboratory Medicine, University Hospital Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Daniela BajoUnit of Laboratory Medicine, University Hospital Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Lorenza BellincampiUnit of Laboratory Medicine, University Hospital Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Anna Maria De AngelisUnit of Laboratory Medicine, University Hospital Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Alessandro TerrinoniDepartment of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Massimo PieriDepartment of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Eleonora NicolaiDepartment of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Vito N Di LecceDepartment of Emergency, University Hospital Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Carla PaganelliDepartment of Emergency, University Hospital Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Gianluigi FerrazzaDepartment of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Susanna LongoDepartment of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Marco CiottiUnit of Laboratory Medicine, University Hospital Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
Sergio BernardiniDepartment of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionMild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) represents a major public health concern and affects millions of people worldwide every year. Diagnosis mainly relies on clinical criteria and computed tomography (CT) scans. GFAP (glial fibrillary acidic protein) and UCH-L1 (ubiquitin carboxyl-terminal hydrolase-L1) have been recently studied as potential biomarkers of mTBI. This study retrospectively evaluated the possible use of these combined biomarkers as negative predictors for excluding brain injuries in patients with suspected mTBI in the emergency department.

methodsAdult patients (n = 130) enrolled at Tor Vergata University Hospital (Rome, Italy), consecutively registered at the triage of the emergency department between October 2022 and January 2023, with non-penetrating TBI and Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score of 13-15, were considered. All eligible patients underwent intracranial CT scans and blood tests, within 12 h after trauma, for GFAP and UCH-L1 serum concentrations.

resultsIntracranial CT detected injuries in only seven patients (5%); GFAP and UCH-L1 tested positive in 96 patients and negative in 34 patients (74% vs. 26%). Combined biomarkers had a sensitivity equal to 1.00 (95% CI 0.64-1.00) and a negative predictive value (NPV) of 1.00 (0.99-1.00) in mTBI diagnosis with a negative CT.

conclusionsCombined laboratory tests for GFAP and UCH-L1 biomarkers might play a potential clinical role in avoiding unnecessary head CT scans after mTBI in emergency departments.

Indexed as

BiomarkersDiagnostic accuracyHead CT scanMild traumatic brain injuryPatient treatment turnaround time

Identifiers

PMID39448905
PMCPMC11515575

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.