Prolonged Cerebral Circulation Time Is the Best Parameter for Predicting Vasospasm during Initial CT Perfusion in Subarachnoid Hemorrhagic Patients

Blood-brain barrier (BBB) breakdown, inflammatory and immune cell activation, and chronic cerebral hypoperfusion are features of multiple sclerosis (MS). The aim is to determine the influence of endothelin-1 (ET1) and asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) on cerebral circulation time (CCT) in patients with MS. In all, 64 patients with MS (39 relapsing-remitting [RR]-MS; 25 secondary progressive [SP]-MS subtype) and 37 controls (C) were studied. Cerebral circulation time was obtained by angiography. Plasmatic ET1 and ADMA were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Lesion load (LL) and brain volume (BV) were obtained by magnetic resonance imaging. Cerebral circulation time was correlated to ET1, ADMA, LL, BV, disease duration (DD), and Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS). In MS, both ET1 and ADMA were significantly higher than C ( P < .0001); CCT was approximately 2 times lower than C ( P < .0001) and significantly slower in SP than in RR-MS ( P = .0215). Cerebral circulation time significantly correlated with ET1 in SP-MS ( r = 0.38), whereas in RR-MS CCT significantly correlated with DD ( r = 0.75). The LL, BV, and EDSS did not correlate with CCT. Endothelin-1 significantly influences CCT delay in SP-MS. Diversely, CCT in RR-MS is independent of ET1 and correlates significantly with DD. We conclude that in RR-MS, DD responds to neurovascular damage accumulation. It is supposed that high ET1 and ADMA levels stem from a protective response to early insults, aimed at opposing nitric oxide overproduction, whereas persistent pathological ET1 and ADMA levels translate into detrimental long-term effects, due to increased brain micro-vessel resistance.

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Efficacy of multiple intraarterial papaverine infusions for improvement in cerebral circulation time in patients with recurrent cerebral vasospasm

Journal of Neurosurgery ◽

10.3171/jns.2004.100.3.0414 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 100 (3) ◽

pp. 414-421 ◽

Cited By ~ 43

Author(s):

James K. Liu ◽

Michael S. Tenner ◽

Oren N. Gottfried ◽

Edwin A. Stevens ◽

Joshua M. Rosenow ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cerebral Vasospasm ◽

Cerebral Circulation ◽

Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage ◽

Primary Treatment ◽

Circulation Time ◽

Control Group ◽

Content Type ◽

The Mean ◽

Cerebral Circulation Time ◽

Fine Print

Object. Cerebral vasospasm that is caused by aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage and that is refractory to maximal medical management can be treated with selective intraarterial papaverine infusions. The effects of single papaverine treatments on cerebral circulation time are well known. The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of multiple, repeated papaverine infusions on the cerebral circulation time in patients with recurrent vasospasm. Methods. A retrospective study was conducted in 17 patients who received multiple intraarterial papaverine infusions in 91 carotid artery (CA) territories for the treatment of cerebral vasospasm. Cerebral circulation times were measured from the first angiographic image, in which peak contrast was seen above the supraclinoid internal CA, to the peak filling of cortical veins. Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) scores assessed 12 months after discharge were reviewed. Cerebral circulation times in 16 CA territories were measured in a control group of 11 patients. Seventeen patients received a total of 91 papaverine treatments. Prolonged cerebral circulation times improved after 90 (99%) of 91 papaverine treatments. The prepapaverine mean cerebral circulation time was 6.54 seconds (range 3.35–27 seconds) and the immediate postpapaverine mean cerebral circulation time was 4.19 seconds (range 2.1–12.6 seconds), an overall mean decrease of 2.35 seconds (36%, p < 0.001). Recurrent vasospasm reflected by prolonged cerebral circulation times continued to improve with subsequent papaverine infusions. Repeated infusions were just as successful quantitatively as the primary treatment (mean change 2.06 seconds). The mean cerebral circulation time in the control group was 5.21 seconds (range 4–6.8 seconds). In five patients a dramatic reversal of low-attenuation changes was detected on computerized tomography scans. The mean GOS score at 12 months after discharge was 3.4. Conclusions. The preliminary results indicate that multiple intraarterial papaverine treatments consistently improve cerebral circulation times, even with repeated infusions in cases of recurrent vasospasm.

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