Aspects of intracerebral hematomas--an update

Intraventricular fibrinolytic for the treatment of intraventricular hemorrhage: a network meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE

To explore which intraventricular fibrinolytic agent - urokinase (UK) or recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA) - combined with extraventricular drainage (EVD) is most suitable for patients with spontaneous intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

We searched PubMed, MEDLINE, OVID, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases for relevant articles and assessed their quality and extracted statistical analyses using Stata 13.0 and Revman 5.3 software.

RESULTS

Compared with EVD alone, EVD combined with an agent causing intraventricular fibrinolysis (IVF) improved the survival and prognosis of patients with IVH. Regarding the patients' survival rates and prognoses, the treatments, from best to worst results were EVD + UK, EVD + rt-PA, EVD alone. The proportion of patients with serious disability also increased with these treatments, however, with the highest to lowest proportions being EVD + rt-PA, EVD + UK, EVD alone. In addition, EVD + IVF was associated with a higher risk of intracranial rebleeding (from lowest to highest incidence: EVD alone, EVD + rt-PA, EVD + UK). Finally, EVD + UK is associated with an increased risk of potential intracranial infection (from lowest to highest incidence: EVD + rt-PA, EVD alone, EVD + UK).

CONCLUSIONS

EVD + UK may be the best approach to improving patients' survival rate and prognosis. However, it also presents the highest risk of intracranial infection and rebleeding. EVD + IVF increased the proportion of patients with serious disability.

Brain Injury Biomarker Behavior in Spontaneous Intracerebral Hemorrhage

BACKGROUND

S100B and neuron-specific enolase (NSE) have been widely studied in diverse neurocritical pathologies, being recognized as the most promising biomarkers for brain injury assessment. However, their role in intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) has not been widely analyzed.

METHODS

This was an observational prospective cohort study of patients with ICH admitted to a neurocritical care unit. Blood samples were collected on admission and at 24 hours, 48 hours, and 72 hours. Patient outcomes were assessed at 6 months after the event.

RESULTS

Thirty-six patients with ICH were included in the study. The mortality rate was 36%. Nonsurvivors had higher S100B values than survivors at admission, 24 hours, and 48 hours (P < 0.05). Likewise, S100B levels were higher in patients with poor outcomes (modified Rankin Scale [mRS] score >4) compared with those with good outcome (mRS score ≤3) in the 24-hour, 48-hour, and 72-hour samples. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis showed that S100B at admission, 24 hours, and 48 hours can discriminate between patients who survive and those who die as a consequence of ICH. The 48-hour sample (area under the ROC curve, 0.817; P = 0.003) reached the best values for sensitivity (75%) and specificity (80%); cutoff, 0.250 μg/L. For 6-month functional outcome, S100B protein could differentiate between groups at 24, 48, and 72 hours. The S100B 24-hour sample had the best values for sensitivity (82.6%) and specificity (72.7%), with a cutoff of 0.202 μg/L. We found no clear relationship between NSE values and clinical characteristics.

CONCLUSIONS

S100B protein acts as early predictor of mortality and functional outcome in patients with ICH. This biomarker measurement can provide additional information beyond clinical and radiologic findings to guide physicians in the management of these patients.

The Clinical Efficacy of Electromagnetic Navigation-Guided Hematoma Puncture Drainage in Patients with Hypertensive Basal Ganglia Hemorrhage

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the clinical efficacy of navigation-guided minimally invasive surgery in patients with hypertensive basal ganglia hemorrhage.

METHODS

A total of 64 patients with hypertensive basal ganglia hemorrhage were enrolled in this retrospective study. They were divided into a navigation group and a traditional group based on surgical approaches. The data for the 2 groups of patients were analyzed with regard for the hematoma clearance rate, duration of surgery, duration of hospitalization, Glasgow Outcome Scale score at discharge, Barthel index score at 6 months, and postoperative complication rates for rebleeding and pneumonia.

RESULTS

There were no significant differences in basic characteristics between the 2 groups (P > 0.05). The hematoma clearance rate was significantly lower in the navigation group (49.18 ± 16.76%) than in the traditional group (84.29 ± 6.91%, P < 0.01). The duration of surgery and duration of hospitalization were significantly shorter in the navigation group (55.00 ± 11.89 minutes and 24.25 ± 7.1 days, respectively) than in the traditional group (156.38 ± 47.9 minutes and 32.63 ± 9.8 days, respectively; both P < 0.01). There were also significant differences between the 2 groups in Glasgow Outcome Scale scores (P = 0.006). The Barthel index scores were significantly greater in the navigation group (73.13 ± 18.76) than in the traditional group (57.63 ± 26.63, P < 0.05). There were no significant differences between the 2 groups in the complication rates (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Under certain conditions, compared with standard craniotomy and hematoma evacuation, navigation-guided hematoma puncture aspiration and catheter drainage is simple, effective, and safe as a treatment for hypertensive basal ganglia hemorrhage.

Update in intracerebral hemorrhage

Spontaneous, nontraumatic intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is defined as bleeding within the brain parenchyma. Intracranial hemorrhage includes bleeding within the cranial vault and encompasses ICH, subdural hematoma, epidural bleeds, and subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). This review will focus only on ICH. This stroke subtype accounts for about 10% of all strokes. The hematoma locations are deep or ganglionic, lobar, cerebellar, and brain stem in descending order of frequency. Intracerebral hemorrhage occurs twice as common as SAH and is equally as deadly. Risk factors for ICH include hypertension, cerebral amyloid angiopathy, advanced age, antithrombotic therapy and history of cerebrovascular disease. The clinical presentation is "stroke like" with sudden onset of focal neurological deficits. Noncontrast head computerized tomography (CT) scan is the standard diagnostic tool. However, newer neuroimaging techniques have improved the diagnostic yield in terms of underlying pathophysiology and may aid in prognosis. Intracerebral hemorrhage is a neurological emergency. Medical care begins with stabilization of airway, breathing function, and circulation (ABCs), followed by specific measures aimed to decrease secondary neurological damage and to prevent both medical and neurological complications. Reversal of coagulopathy when present is of the essence. Blood pressure management can be key and continues as an area of debate and ongoing research. Surgical evacuation of ICH is of unproven benefit though a subset of well-selected patients may have improved outcomes. Ventriculostomy and intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring are interventions also used in this patient population. To date, hemostatic medications and neuroprotectants have failed to result in clinical improvement. A multidisciplinary approach is recommended, with participation of vascular neurology, vascular neurosurgery, critical care, and rehabilitation medicine as the main players.

Surgical treatment of elevated intracranial pressure: decompressive craniectomy and intracranial pressure monitoring

Surgical techniques that address elevated intracranial pressure include (1) intraventricular catheter insertion and cerebrospinal fluid drainage, (2) removal of an intracranial space-occupying lesion, and (3) decompressive craniectomy. This review discusses the role of surgery in the management of elevated intracranial pressure, with special focus on intraventricular catheter placement and decompressive craniectomy. The techniques and potential complications of each procedure are described, and the existing evidence regarding the impact of these procedures on patient outcome is reviewed. Surgical management of mass lesions and ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke occurring in the posterior fossa is not discussed herein.

External ventricular drainage for intraventricular hemorrhage

Hemorrhagic stroke accounts for only 10% to 15% of all strokes; however, it is associated with devastating outcomes. Extension of intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) into the ventricles or intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) has been consistently demonstrated as an independent predictor of poor outcome. In most circumstances the increased intracranial pressure and acute hydrocephalus caused by ICH is managed by placement of an external ventricular drain (EVD). We present a systematic review of the literature on the topic of EVD in the setting of IVH hemorrhage, articulating the scope of the problem and prognostic factors, clinical indications, surgical adjuncts, and other management issues.

The ABCs of Accurate Volumetric Measurement of Cerebral Hematoma

Background and Purpose—

Both initial hematoma volume and hematoma growth are independent predictors of clinical outcomes and mortality among intracerebral hemorrhage patients. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of different computed tomography image acquisition protocols and hematoma volume measurement techniques.

Methods—

We used plastic and cadaveric phantoms to determine the accuracy of different volumetric measurement techniques. We performed both axial and spiral computed tomography scans with 0.75-, 1.5-, 3.0-, and 4.5-mm-thick transverse sections (with no gap). Different measurement techniques (planimetry, ABC/2, and 3D rendering) and different window width/level settings (I, 150/50 versus II, 587/−321) were used to assess generated errors in volumetric calculations.

Results—

Both axial and spiral computed tomography scans yielded similar percent errors for different slice thicknesses and different measurement techniques. Comparison of different measurement techniques revealed a significant difference in measurement error only from the ABC/2 method as compared with 3D-rendering measurements ( P <0.0001). The overall measurement error according to the ABC/2 method was further increased by ≈8% for irregularly shaped hematomas ( P =0.0004). A significant percent difference in measurement error was observed between window width/levels I and II for both planimetry (mean difference across all thicknesses, 1.91±3.78, P =0.004) and Analyze software (mean difference across all thicknesses, 6.92±7.29, P <0.0001) methods.

Conclusions—

A better understanding of the limitations that may affect measurement of hematoma volume is crucial in the assessment of hematoma volume, which is considered an independent marker of clinical outcome.