[1] The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) is used to objectively describe
the extent of impaired consciousness in all types of acute medical and trauma patients
. The scale assesses patients according to three aspects of responsiveness: eye-opening, motor, and verbal responses.
Why is GCS important?
Assessment of level of consciousness using the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) is a tool requiring knowledge that is
important in detecting early deterioration in a patient’s level of consciousness
. Critical thinking used with the skill and knowledge in assessing the GCS is the foundation of all nursing practice.
What is normal GCS score?
A normal GCS score is equal to
15
, which indicates a person is fully conscious.
What is GCS and why is it important?
The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) is
the most common scoring system used to describe the level of consciousness in a person following a traumatic brain injury
. Basically, it is used to help gauge the severity of an acute brain injury.
What are GCS levels?
The GCS measures three different components: eye opening (E), verbal responses (V), and motor responses (M). The summation of the individual score (i.e., E + V + M) classifies the person into
mild (score = 13–15)
, moderate (score = 9–12), severe (score = 3–8), and vegetative state (score <3).
Is GCS 3 dead?
Although the presence of fixed, dilated pupils in association with a GCS score of 3 has led to a
100% mortality rate
in a number of studies,
9 , 13
our findings show that survival and even good outcome (although very rare) are still possible.
What is GCS 3 in medical terms?
The GCS is the summation of scores for eye, verbal, and motor responses. The minimum score is a 3 which
indicates deep coma or a brain-dead state
. The maximum is 15 which indicates a fully awake patient (the original maximum was 14, but the score has since been modified).
How do I check my GCS scale?
To calculate the patient’s GCS , you need
to add together the scores from eye opening, verbal response and motor response
. Added together, these give you an overall score out of the maximum of 15.
Can you recover from GCS 5?
4 The survival rate after a TBI, severe enough to cause deep coma and low Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) scores, is generally poor, even in young adults. Studies show a very high overall mortality, ranging between 76% and 89%. 5, 6, 7 Of the surviving patients,
only very few recover to a good outcome
.
How do I remember the GCS scale?
REMEMBER THE NUMBERS – Eye goes up to 4, Speech goes up to 5,
motor goes up to 6
. If you know those 6 things, AND NOTHING ELSE, you’re going to be able to answer 90+ percent of the GCS questions on the test correctly!
Is a GCS of 15 good?
Head Injury Classification:
Severe Head Injury—-GCS score of 8 or less Moderate Head Injury—-GCS score of 9 to 12 Mild Head Injury—-GCS score of
13 to 15
(Adapted from: Advanced Trauma Life Support: Course for Physicians, American College of Surgeons, 1993).
How do you read GCS?
The lowest score for each category is 1, therefore the lowest score is 3 (no response to pain + no verbalisation + no eye opening). A GCS of 8 or less indicates
severe injury
, one of 9-12 moderate injury, and a GCS score of 13-15 is obtained when the injury is minor.
What to do if GCS drops?
Contact the medical officer if there is any deterioration in the scores. Any drop in GCS
requires urgent medical review
. A MET call should be activated if there is a drop in the total GCS of 2 or more. The pupils are assessed as part of neurological observations.
What does GCS 10 mean?
The
total Coma Score
thus has values between three and 15, three being the worst and 15 being the highest. The score is the sum of the scores as well as the individual elements. For example, a score of 10 might be expressed as GCS10 = E3V4M3. Best eye response (4) No eye opening.
At what GCS do you intubate?
In trauma, a Glasgow Coma Scale score (GCS)
of 8 or less
indicates a need for endotracheal intubation. Some advocate a similar approach for other causes of decreased consciousness, however, the loss of airway reflexes and risk of aspiration cannot be reliably predicted using the GCS alone.
How do you assess level of consciousness?
The tool we use to assess the level of consciousness is
the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS)
. This tool is used at the bedside in conjunction with other clinical observations and it allows us to have a baseline and ongoing measurement of the level of consciousness (LOC) for our patients.
