Middle cerebral artery aneurysms with intracerebral hematoma—the impact of side and volume on final outcome

Middle cerebral artery aneurysms (MCA aneurysms) belong to the most frequent type of intracranial aneurysms forming an intracerebral hematoma. The consequences of the hematoma—the laterality, the impact of ICH volume and size of the aneurysm with the final outcome of these patients had not been studied in detail in this location, and we focused on the analysis of these factors.

Patients with MCA aneurysms and associated intracerebral hematomas with a volume ≥10 ml were studied; these were treated from January 2006 to December 2015. During this period, more than 700 patients with spontaneous subarachnoid hemorrhage were admitted to the Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital Brno. The data were collected from the subarachnoid hemorrhage database of the unit and from the local hospital registry. All consecutive patients at the treating center were involved in this retrospective study. We collected clinical data such as age, gender, aneurysm location, preoperative hematoma size, Hunt-Hess grade and type of surgical procedures. We focused on the analysis of the final outcome [Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) score] in relation to ICH volume, side of bleeding and finally the relationship between aneurysm size and the volume of ICH.

Fifty-eight patients with an MCA aneurysm and ICH were included; the mean age of this series was 59.4 years. Thirty-six patients (62%) had clinical status Hunt-Hess 4–5 on admission. The mean size of the intracerebral hematoma was 47.1 ml (10–133 ml). Most frequently, in 30 patients (52%), the hematoma had bled into the temporal lobe. Fifty three patients were operated on, and 5 were treated conservatively because of their poor condition. Twenty-three patients (40%) had a favorable Glasgow Outcome Scale score, and 35 (60%) had an unfavorable outcome including 20 patients (35%) who died. Of the 53 patients operated on, 20 (38%) underwent decompressive hemicraniectomy (DHC). Patients with an unfavorable outcome had significantly larger hematomas with a median size of 54 ml, whereas those with a favorable outcome had a median size of 26 ml (p = 0.0022). Larger hematomas were found on the right side. The cutoff volume for an unfavorable outcome in ICH was 25 ml. The outcomes were not related to the side of the ICH (p = 0.42), and the aneurysm size did not predetermine the ICH volume (p = 0.3159).

Our study confirms the benefit of the active treatment of patients with MCA aneurysms and associated ICH. A significant proportion of these patients achieves a favorable outcome. No association between the side of bleeding and outcome was demonstrated. Hematomas larger than 25 ml have a greater tendency to lead to an unfavorable outcome. The treatment decision-making process should not differ for either side.