ROLE OF APOE-?4 ALLELE IN RECOVERY FROM TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY: STUDY IN A TERTIARY CLINIC IN KOLKATA.

The outcome of traumatic brain injury is quite variable and not fully explained by known factors. There are conflicting reports regarding the association between the ApolipoproteinE-?4 allele and the consequence of traumatic brain injury (TBI). Our objective was to examine if the polymorphism of ApolipoproteinE has any influence on the outcome of TBI. A TOTAL OF 172 patients who suffered from mild or moderate head injury and who are admitted to the hospital emergency ward within 24h of traumatic brain injury or underwent emergency surgery for head injury were enrolled in the study. With previous informed consent 5 ml venous blood samples were collected from patients & preserved in EDTA at -200 C. PCR and RFLP techniques were used to find out the allele of Apo E. All discharged patients were followed up after 6 months and allocated to one of the categories of Glasgow Outcome Scale by means of structured interview. Any significant association between ApoE-?4 and traumatic brain injury in the patients from this part of India could not be ascertained and this is comparable to most of the other studies conducted in other parts of India and the world.