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Abstract

Cerebral vasospasm is the classic cause of delayed neurological deterioration after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage, leading to cerebral ischemia and infarction, and thus to poor outcome and occasionally death. Advances in diagnosis and treatment-principally the use of nimodipine, intensive care management, hemodynamic manipulations and endovascular neuroradiology procedures-have improved the prospects for these patients, but outcomes remain disappointing. Recent clinical trials have demonstrated marked prevention of vasospasm with the endothelin receptor antagonist clazosentan, yet patient outcome was not improved. This Review considers possible explanations for this result and proposes alternative causes of neurological deterioration and poor outcome after subarachnoid hemorrhage, including delayed effects of global cerebral ischemia, thromboembolism, microcirculatory dysfunction and cortical spreading depression.

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The burden, trends, and demographics of mortality from subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Carol Johnston, S Selvin, D Gress (1998)

The objective of this study was to describe the recent epidemiology of mortality from subarachnoid hemorrhage in the United States. Subarachnoid hemorrhage is distinct from other forms of stroke in its risk factors, demographics, and treatment. However, it is often clustered with other stroke subtypes, obscuring its unique epidemiology. We analyzed subarachnoid hemorrhage mortality data from the National Center for Health Statistics of the United States for the years 1979 to 1994 and compared it with other stroke subtypes. Age-adjusted mortality rates of subarachnoid hemorrhage were 62% greater in females than in males and 57% greater in blacks than in whites. The median age of death from subarachnoid hemorrhage was 59 years compared with 73 years for intracerebral hemorrhage and 81 years for ischemic stroke. Mortality rates of subarachnoid hemorrhage have decreased by approximately 1% per year since 1979, and the mean age of death has steadily increased from 57 years in 1979 to 60 years in 1994. Subarachnoid hemorrhage accounted for 4.4% of stroke mortality but 27.3% of all stroke-related years of potential life lost before age 65, a measure of premature mortality. The proportion of years of potential life lost due to subarachnoid hemorrhage was comparable with ischemic stroke (38.5%) and intracranial hemorrhage (34.2%). Subarachnoid hemorrhage is an uncommon cause of stroke mortality but occurs at a young age, producing a relatively large burden of premature mortality, comparable with ischemic stroke.

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Case-fatality rates and functional outcome after subarachnoid hemorrhage: a systematic review.

J Hop, G Rinkel, A Algra … (1997)

During the last three decades, new management strategies have been developed for patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage. To assess whether the case-fatality rate has improved after the introduction of new management strategies, we studied outcome in all population-based studies from 1960 onward. To identify population-based studies that reported on case-fatality rate in subarachnoid hemorrhage, we performed a MEDLINE search and checked all reference lists of the studies found. Two authors (J.W.H. and G.J.E.R.) independently assessed all studies for eligibility, using predefined criteria for case finding and diagnosis, and extracted data on case-fatality rates. We used weighted linear regression analysis to quantify change in case-fatality rate over time. We found 21 studies, describing 25 study periods between 1960 and 1992. Case-fatality rates varied between 32% and 67%, with the exception of one recent study. The case-fatality rate decreased by 0.5% per year (95% confidence interval, -0.1 to 1.2); the decline was steeper after adjustment for age and sex (0.9% per year; 95% confidence interval, -0.7 to 2.6; data from 12 studies). The case-fatality rate after subarachnoid hemorrhage has decreased during the last three decades. A plausible explanation for this decrease is the improved management of patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage.