Methods: This two-centered, retrospective study included 3,080 thoracic trauma patients (2,562 males, 518 females; mean age 33.9±19.4 years; range, 2 months to 91 years) treated between January 2005 and January 2019. Demographic characteristics, mechanisms of injury, traumatic injuries, injury severity score and new injury severity score results, treatments, comorbidities, complications, morbidity and mortality rates, and durations of hospital stay were collected. Data were used to predict the risk factors for development of post-traumatic acute respiratory distress syndrome by univariate and multivariate statistical analysis.

Results: Acute respiratory distress syndrome was detected in 81 patients. In multivariate logistic regression analysis; age, pulmonary contusion, intracranial hemorrhage, rib fracture (unilateral and four-five pieces), femur and tibia fracture, diabetes mellitus, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, blood transfusion (?3 units), high white blood cell count at admission, sepsis, and hepatic injury were detected as independent risk factors (p<0.05). Optimal cutoff points (sensitivity/specificity ratios) for acute respiratory distress syndrome development risk were ?16 (79%/68%) for injury severity score, ?27 (90%/68.7%) for new injury severity score, and ?16,000 (75.3%/71.6%) for admission white blood cell count. New injury severity score was superior than injury severity score to predict the development of acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Conclusion: Acute respiratory distress syndrome causes significant mortality and morbidity in trauma patients. In addition to the well-known risk factors, diabetes mellitus and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease were independent risk factors. We defined a cutoff value for new injury severity score to predict post-traumatic acute respiratory distress syndrome.