Predicting outcome in poor-grade patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage: a retrospective review of 159 aggressively managed cases

1996 ◽  
Vol 85 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter D. Le Roux ◽  
J. Paul Elliott ◽  
David W. Newell ◽  
M. Sean Grady ◽  
H. Richard Winn

✓ To determine what factors predict outcome, the authors retrospectively reviewed the management of all 159 poor-grade patients admitted to Harborview Medical Center at the University of Washington who suffered aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage between 1983 and 1993. Favorable outcome (assessed by the Glasgow Outcome Scale) occurred in 53.9% of Hunt and Hess Grade IV, and 24.1% of Grade V patients. Outcome was largely determined by the initial hemorrhage and subsequent development of intractable intracranial hypertension or cerebral infarction. Using multivariate analysis, the authors developed three models to predict outcome. It was found that predicting outcome based only on clinical and diagnostic criteria present at admission may have resulted in withholding treatment from 30% of the patients who subsequently experienced favorable outcomes. It is concluded that aggressive management including surgical aneurysm obliteration can benefit patients with poor neurological grades and should not be denied solely on the basis of the neurological condition on admission.

2004 ◽  
Vol 101 (3) ◽  
pp. 408-416 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory G. Heuer ◽  
Michelle J. Smith ◽  
J. Paul Elliott ◽  
H. Richard Winn ◽  
Peter D. Leroux

Object. Increased intracranial pressure (ICP) is well known to affect adversely patients with head injury. In contrast, the variables associated with ICP following aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) and their impact on outcome have been less intensely studied. Methods. In this retrospective study the authors reviewed a prospective observational database cataloging the treatment details in 433 patients with SAH who had undergone surgical occlusion of an aneurysm as well as ICP monitoring. All 433 patients underwent postoperative ICP monitoring, whereas only 146 (33.7%) underwent both pre- and postoperative ICP monitoring. The mean maximal ICP was 24.9 ± 17.3 mm Hg (mean ± standard deviation). During their hospital stay, 234 patients (54%) had elevated ICP (> 20 mm Hg), including 136 of those (48.7%) with a good clinical grade (Hunt and Hess Grades I–III) and 98 (63.6%) of the 154 patients with a poor grade (Hunt and Hess Grades IV and V) on admission. An increased mean maximal ICP was associated with several admission variables: worse Hunt and Hess clinical grade (p < 0.0001), a lower Glasgow Coma Scale (GSC) motor score (p < 0.0001); worse SAH grade based on results of computerized tomography studies (p < 0.0001); intracerebral hemorrhage (p = 0.024); severity of intraventricular hemorrhage (p < 0.0001); and rebleeding (p = 0.0048). Both intraoperative cerebral swelling (p = 0.0017) and postoperative GCS score (p < 0.0001) were significantly associated with a raised ICP. Variables such as patient age, aneurysm size, symptomatic vasospasm, intraoperative aneurysm rupture, and secondary cerebral insults such as hypoxia were not associated with raised ICP. Increased ICP adversely affected outcome: 71.9% of patients with normal ICP demonstrated favorable 6-month outcomes postoperatively, whereas 63.5% of patients with ICP between 20 and 50 mm Hg and 33.3% with ICP greater than 50 mm Hg demonstrated favorable outcomes. Among 21 patients whose raised ICP did not respond to mannitol therapy, all experienced a poor outcome and 95.2% died. Among 145 patients whose elevated ICP responded to mannitol, 66.9% had a favorable outcome and only 20.7% were dead 6 months after surgery (p < 0.0001). According to results of multivariate analysis, however, ICP was not an independent outcome predictor (odds ratio 1.26, 95% confidence interval 0.28–5.68). Conclusions. Increased ICP is common after SAH, even in patients with a good clinical grade. Elevated ICP post-SAH is associated with a worse patient outcome, particularly if ICP does not respond to treatment. This association, however, may depend more on the overall severity of the SAH than on ICP alone.


2004 ◽  
Vol 101 (2) ◽  
pp. 255-261 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Reilly ◽  
Chris Amidei ◽  
Jocelyn Tolentino ◽  
Babak S. Jahromi ◽  
R. Loch Macdonald

Object. This study was conducted for two purposes. The first was to determine whether a combination of measurements of subarachnoid clot volume, clearance rate, and density could improve prediction of which patients experience vasospasm. The second was to determine if each of these three measures could be used independently to predict vasospasm. Methods. Digital files of the cranial computerized tomography (CT) scans obtained in 75 consecutive patients admitted within 24 hours of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) were analyzed in a blinded fashion by an observer who used quantitative imaging software to measure the volume of SAH and its density. Clot clearance rates were measured by quantifying SAH volume on subsequent CT scans. Vasospasm was defined as new onset of a focal neurological deficit or altered consciousness 5 to 12 days after SAH in the absence of other causes of deterioration, diagnosed with the aid of or exclusively by confirmatory transcranial Doppler ultrasonography and/or cerebral angiography. Univariate analysis showed that vasospasm was significantly associated with the SAH grade as classified on the Fisher scale, the initial clot volume, initial clot density, and percentage of clot cleared per day (p < 0.05). In multivariate analysis, initial clot volume and percentage of clot cleared per day were significant predictors of vasospasm (p < 0.05), whereas Fisher grade and initial clot density were not. Conclusions. Quantitative analysis of subarachnoid clot shows that vasospasm is best predicted by initial subarachnoid clot volume and the percentage of clot cleared per day.


2001 ◽  
Vol 95 (3) ◽  
pp. 393-401 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tõnu Rätsep ◽  
Toomas Asser

Object. In this study the authors evaluated the relative role of cerebral hemodynamic impairment (HDI) in the pathogenesis of delayed cerebral ischemia and poor clinical outcome after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). Methods. Cerebral hemodynamics were assessed daily with transcranial Doppler (TCD) ultrasonography in 55 consecutive patients with verified SAH. Hemodynamic impairment was defined as blood flow velocity (BFV) values consistent with vasospasm in conjunction with impaired autoregulatory vasodilation as evaluated using the transient hyperemic response tests in the middle cerebral arteries. A total of 1344 TCD examinations were performed, in which the evaluation of HDI was feasible during 80.9% and HDI was registered during 12% of the examinations. It was found that HDI occurred in 60% of patients and was frequently recorded in conjunction with severe vasospasm (p < 0.05) and a rapid increase of BFV values (p < 0.05). Detection of HDI was closely associated with the development of delayed ischemic brain damage after SAH (p < 0.05). Furthermore, because delayed ischemia was never observed in cases in which vasospasm had not led to the development of HDI, its occurrence increased significantly the likelihood of subsequent cerebral ischemia among the patients with vasospasm (p < 0.05). Detection of HDI was independently related to unfavorable clinical outcome according to Glasgow Outcome Scale at 6 months after SAH (p < 0.05). Conclusions. The results showed that HDI is common after SAH and can be evaluated with TCD ultrasonography in routine clinical practice. Detection of HDI could be useful for identifying patients at high or low risk for delayed ischemic complications and unfavorable clinical outcome after SAH.


2003 ◽  
Vol 99 (6) ◽  
pp. 953-959 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jari Siironen ◽  
Seppo Juvela ◽  
Joona Varis ◽  
Matti Porras ◽  
Kristiina Poussa ◽  
...  

Object. From the moment an intracranial aneurysm ruptures, cerebral blood flow is impaired, and this impairment mainly determines the outcome in patients who survive after the initial bleeding. The exact mechanism of impairment is unknown, but activation of coagulation and fibrinolysis correlate with clinical condition and outcome after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). The purpose of this study was to determine whether enoxaparin, a low-molecular-weight heparin, which is a well-known anticoagulating agent, has any effect on the outcome of aneurysmal SAH postoperatively. Methods. In this randomized, double-blind, single-center clinical trial, 170 patients (85 per group) with aneurysmal SAH were randomly assigned to receive either enoxaparin (40 mg subcutaneously once daily) or a placebo, starting within 24 hours after occlusion of the aneurysm and continuing for 10 days. Analysis was done on an intention-to-treat basis. Outcome was assessed at 3 months on both the Glasgow Outcome and modified Rankin Scales. Patients were eligible for the study if surgery was performed within 48 hours post-SAH, and no intracerebral hemorrhage was larger than 20 mm in diameter on the first postoperative computerized tomography scan. At 3 months, there were no significant differences in outcome by treatment group. Of the 170 patients, 11 (6%) died, and only 95 (56%) had a good outcome. Principal causes of unfavorable outcome were poor initial condition, delayed cerebral ischemia, and surgical complications. There were four patients with additional intracranial bleeding in the group receiving enoxaparin. The bleeding was not necessarily associated with the treatment itself, nor did it require treatment, and there were no such patients in the placebo group. Conclusions. Enoxaparin seemed to have no effect on the outcome of aneurysmal SAH in patients who had already received routine nimodipine and who had received triple-H therapy when needed. Routine use of low-molecular-weight heparin should be avoided during the early postoperative period in patients with SAH, because this agent seems to increase intracranial bleeding complications slightly, with no beneficial effect on neurological outcome.


2000 ◽  
Vol 93 (6) ◽  
pp. 967-975 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tetsuji Inagawa ◽  
Masaaki Shibukawa ◽  
Futoshi Inokuchi ◽  
Yoshio Tokuda ◽  
Yoshikazu Okada ◽  
...  

Object. The purpose of this study was to assess the overall management and surgical outcome of primary intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) and aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) among the 85,000 residents of Izumo City, Japan.Methods. During 1991 through 1996, 267 patients with ICH and 123 with SAH were treated in Izumo. Of the 267 patients with ICH, 25 underwent hematoma removal by open craniotomy or suboccipital craniectomy and 34 underwent stereotactic evacuation of the hematoma, whereas aneurysm clipping was performed in 71 of the 123 patients with SAH; operability rates were thus 22% for ICH and 58% for SAH (p < 0.0001). The overall 30-day survival rates were 86% for ICH and 66% for SAH (p < 0.0001) and the 2-year survival rates were 73% and 62% (p = 0.0207), respectively. In patients who underwent surgery, 30-day and 2-year survival rates were 93% for ICH and 100% for SAH (p = 0.0262), and 75% for ICH and 97% for SAH (p = 0.0002), respectively. In patients with ICH, the most important predictors of 30-day case-fatality rates were the volume of the hematoma, the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score, rebleeding, and midline shifting, whereas those for 2-year survival were the GCS score, age, rebleeding, and hematoma volume. In patients with SAH, the most important determinants of 30-day case-fatality rates were the GCS score and age, whereas only the GCS score had a significant impact on 2-year survival.Conclusions. The overall survival rates for patients with ICH or SAH in Izumo were more favorable than those in previously published epidemiological studies. However, despite improved surgical results, the overall management of ICH and SAH still produced an unsatisfactory outcome, mainly because of primary brain damage.


1981 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 141-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harold P. Adams ◽  
Neal F. Kassell ◽  
James C. Torner ◽  
Donald W. Nibbelink ◽  
Adolph L. Sahs

✓ The overall results are presented of early medical management and delayed operation among 249 patients studied during the period 1974 to 1977, treated within 3 days of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) and evaluated 90 days after aneurysm rupture. The results included 36.2% mortality, 17.9% survival with serious neurological sequelae, and 46% with a favorable outcome. Of the patients admitted in good neurological condition, 28.7% had died and only 55.7% had a favorable recovery at 90 days after SAH. These figures represent the results despite effective reduction in early rebleeding by antifibrinolytic therapy and successful surgery in those patients reaching operation. Further therapeutic advances are needed for patients hospitalized within a few days after SAH.


2004 ◽  
Vol 100 (1) ◽  
pp. 8-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane Skjøth-Rasmussen ◽  
Mette Schulz ◽  
Soren Risom Kristensen ◽  
Per Bjerre

Object. In the treatment of patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), early occlusion of the aneurysm is necessary as well as monitoring and treatment of complications following the primary bleeding episode. Monitoring with microdialysis has been studied for its ability to indicate and predict the occurrence of delayed ischemic neurological deficits (DINDs) in patients with SAH. Methods. In 42 patients with aneurysmal SAH microdialysis monitoring of metabolites was performed using a 0.3-µl/minute perfusion flow over several days, and the results were correlated to clinical events and to brain infarction observed on computerized tomography scans. The microdialysis probe was inserted into the territory of the parent artery of the aneurysm. The authors defined an ischemic pattern as increases in the lactate/glucose (L/G) and lactate/pyruvate (L/P) ratios that were greater than 20% followed by a 20% increase in glycerol concentration. This ischemic pattern was found in 17 of 18 patients who experienced a DIND and in three of 24 patients who did not experience a delayed clinical deterioration. The ischemic pattern preceded the occurrence of a DIND by a mean interval of 11 hours. Maximum L/G and L/P ratios did not correlate with the presence of DIND or outcome, and there was no association between the glycerol level and subsequent brain infarction. Conclusions. Microdialysis monitoring of the cerebral metabolism in patients with SAH may predict with high sensitivity and specificity the occurrence of a DIND. Whether an earlier diagnosis results in better treatment of DINDs and, therefore, in overall better outcomes remains to be proven, as it is linked to an efficacious treatment of cerebral vasospasm.


2002 ◽  
Vol 97 (6) ◽  
pp. 1302-1305 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takao Kamezaki ◽  
Kiyoyuki Yanaka ◽  
Sohji Nagase ◽  
Keishi Fujita ◽  
Noriyuki Kato ◽  
...  

Object. Cerebral vasospasm remains a devastating medical complication of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). Reactive oxygen species and subsequent lipid peroxidation are reported to participate in the causes of cerebral vasospasm. This clinical study was performed to investigate the relationships between levels of lipid peroxides in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and both delayed cerebral vasospasm and clinical outcome after SAH. Methods. Levels of phosphatidylcholine hydroperoxide (PCOOH) and cholesteryl ester hydroperoxide (CEOOH) in the CSF were measured in 20 patients with aneurysmal SAH. The patients' CSF was collected within 48 hours of hemorrhage onset and on Day 6 or 7 post-SAH. On Day 7, angiography was performed to verify the degree and extent of the vasospasm. The relationship between the patients' clinical profiles and the levels of lipid peroxides in the CSF were investigated. Both PCOOH and CEOOH were detectable in CSF, and their levels decreased within 7 days after onset of SAH. The levels of CEOOH within 48 hours after onset of hemorrhage were significantly higher in patients in whom symptomatic vasospasm later developed than in patients in whom symptomatic vasospasm did not develop (p = 0.002). Levels of PCOOH measured within 48 hours after onset of hemorrhage were significantly higher in patients with poor outcomes than in patients with good outcomes (p = 0.043). Conclusions. Increased levels of lipid peroxides measured in the CSF during the acute stage of SAH were predictive of both symptomatic vasospasm and poor outcome. Measurements of lipid peroxides in the CSF may be useful prognostically for patient outcomes as well as for predicting symptomatic vasospasm.


1998 ◽  
Vol 88 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Gruber ◽  
Andrea Reinprecht ◽  
Harald Görzer ◽  
Peter Fridrich ◽  
Thomas Czech ◽  
...  

Object. This observational study is based on a consecutive series of 207 patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage who were treated within 7 days of their most recent bleed. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effect of respiratory failure on neurological outcome. Methods. Pulmonary function was assessed by determination of parameters describing pulmonary oxygen transport and exchange, by using composite scores for quantification of lung injury (lung injury score [LIS]) and mechanical ventilator settings (PIF score). Pulmonary function was related to the Hunt and Hess (H & H) grade assigned to the patient at hospital admission (p < 0.001). The pattern and time course of lung injury differed significantly between patients with H & H Grade I or II, Grade III, and Grade IV or V. Hunt and Hess grade, Fisher computerized tomography grade, intracranial pressure, cerebral perfusion pressure, LIS, ratio of PaO2 to the fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO2), and the ratio of the alveolar-minus-arterial oxygen tension difference (AaDO2) to FiO2 were related to neurological outcome (p < 0.001). The LIS on the day of maximum lung injury remained an independent predictor of outcome (p = 0.01) in a stepwise logistic regression analysis. The probability of poor neurological outcome significantly increased with both decreasing cerebral perfusion pressure and increasing severity of lung injury. Conclusions. The overall mortality rate was 22.2% (46 of 207 patients). Subarachnoid hemorrhage and its neurological sequelae accounted for the principal mortality in this series. Medical (nonneurological and nontreatment-related) complications accounted for 37% of all deaths. Systemic inflammatory response syndrome with associated multiple organ dysfunction syndrome was the leading cause of death from medical complications. The authors conclude that respiratory failure is related to neurological outcome, although it is not commonly the primary cause of death from medical complications.


2005 ◽  
Vol 102 (6) ◽  
pp. 998-1003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seppo Juvela ◽  
Jari Siironen ◽  
Johanna Kuhmonen

Object. Stress-induced hyperglycemia has been shown to be associated with poor outcome after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). The authors prospectively tested whether hyperglycemia, independent of other factors, affects patient outcomes and the occurrence of cerebral infarction after SAH. Methods. Previous diseases, health habits, medications, clinical condition, and neuroimaging variables were recorded for 175 patients with SAH who were admitted to the hospital within 48 hours after bleeding. The plasma level of glucose was measured at admission and the fasting value of glucose was measured in the morning after aneurysm occlusion. Factors found to be independently predictive of patient outcomes at 3 months after SAH onset and the appearance of cerebral infarction were tested by performing multiple logistic regression. Plasma glucose values at admission were found to be associated with patient age, body mass index (BMI), history of hypertension, clinical condition, amount of subarachnoid or intraventricular blood, shunt-dependent hydrocephalus, outcome variables, and the appearance of cerebral infarction. When considered independently of age, clinical condition, or amount of subarachnoid, intraventricular, or intracerebral blood, the plasma glucose values at admission predicted poor outcome (per millimole/liter the odds ratio [OR] was 1.24 with a 95% confidence interval [CI] of 1.02–1.51). After an adjustment was made for the amount of subarachnoid blood, the clinical condition, and the duration of temporary artery occlusion during surgery, the BMI was found to be a significant predictor (per kilogram/square meter the OR was 1.15 with a 95% CI of 1.02–1.29) for the finding of cerebral infarction on the follow-up computerized tomography scan. Hypertension (OR 3.11, 95% CI 1.11–8.73)—but not plasma glucose (OR 1.06, 95% CI 0.87–1.29)—also predicted the occurrence of infarction when tested instead of the BMI. Conclusions. Independent of the severity of bleeding, hyperglycemia at admission seems to impair outcome, and excess weight and hypertension appear to elevate the risk of cerebral infarction after SAH.


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