Traumatic injury to the blood vessels of the neck can be graded using the Cervical Vascular Organ Injury Scale.
Blood Vessel |
Grade |
thyroid veins |
I |
common facial vein |
I |
external jugular vein |
I |
non-named arterial branch |
I |
non-named venous branch |
I |
external carotid arterial branches |
II |
thyrocervical trunk or primary branches |
II |
internal jugular vein |
II |
external carotid artery |
III |
subclavian vein |
III |
vertebral artery |
III |
common carotid artery |
IV |
subclavian artery |
IV |
internal carotid artery, extracranial |
V |
where:
• branches of the external carotid artery include: ascending pharyngeal, superior thyroid, lingual, facial, maxillary, occipital, and posterior auricular arteries.
Additional rules for deriving final grade:
(1) If more than 1 Grade III and Grade IV injuries that involve > 50% of vessel circumference are present, then increase the final Grade by 1 (to Grade IV from Grade III; to Grade V from Grade IV).
(2) If a grade IV or Grade V injury is limited to < 25% of vessel circumference, then reduce the final Grade by 1 (to Grade III from Grade IV; to Grade IV from Grade V).
Specialty: Surgery, orthopedic, Emergency Medicine, Critical Care, Surgery, general, Cardiology
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