A Clinical Analysis in Risk Factors of Chronic Subdural Hematoma: Focusing on the Age / 대한신경손상학회지

OBJECTIVE: The current understanding reveals that chronic subdural hematoma (CSDH) is mostly the results of direct or indirect head trauma. Other factors such as alcoholism, medication (such as anticoagulants or antiplatelet agents), liver cirrhosis, chronic renal failure and hematologic disease are also well known as causes of CSDH. Of them, the authors attempted to identify the risk factors of CSDH by focusing on the age with a view point of recent increase in the elderly population. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 216 consecutive CSDH patients who underwent surgery at our institute between 2002 and 2011. We classified them into two groups according to the patients' age (Group A: or =65 years old). Various factors were investigated for risk factor of CSDH, such as head trauma, chronic alcoholism, epilepsy, previous shunt surgery, underlying disease having bleeding tendency or medication affecting blood coagulation. And these factors were compared between the two groups for statistical significance. RESULTS: Among the 216 patients, group A included 81 patients (37.5%), group B included 135 patients (62.5%). The medication of group B had significantly more proportion than group A, comparing to the result that group B had relatively less proportion of head trauma and alcoholism (p<0.05). And medication was more associated with non-traumatic CSDH, especially in group B. CONCLUSION: As previously reported, head trauma or alcoholism are also most important causes as a risk factor of CSDH of all ages in our study. But medication is more closely related to the incidence of CSDH in group A, than group B.

Recent Changes in Risk Factors of Chronic Subdural Hematoma

OBJECTIVE: Chronic subdural hematoma (CSDH) is a typical disease that is encountered frequently in neurosurgical practice. The medications which could cause coagulopathies were known as one of the risk factors of CSDH, such as anticoagulants (ACs) and antiplatelet agents (APs). Recently, the number of patients who are treated with ACs/APs is increasing, especially in the elderly population. With widespread use of these drugs, there is a need to study the changes in risk factors of CSDH patients. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 290 CSDH patients who underwent surgery at our institute between 1996 and 2010. We classified them into three groups according to the time of presentation (Group A : the remote period group, 1996-2000, Group B : the past period group, 2001-2005, and Group C : the recent period group, 2006-2010). Also, we performed the comparative analysis of independent risk factors between three groups. RESULTS: Among the 290 patients, Group A included 71 patients (24.5%), Group B included 98 patients (33.8%) and Group C included 121 patients (41.7%). Three patients (4.2%) in Group A had a history of receiving ACs/APs, 8 patients (8.2%) in Group B, and 19 patients (15.7%) in Group C. Other factors such as head trauma, alcoholism, epilepsy, previous neurosurgery and underlying disease having bleeding tendency were also evaluated. In ACs/APs related cause of CSDH in Group C, significantly less proportion of the patients are associated with trauma or alcohol compared to the non-medication group. CONCLUSION: In this study, the authors concluded that ACs/APs have more importance as a risk factor of CSDH in the recent period compared to the past. Therefore, doctors should prescribe these medications carefully balancing the potential risk and benefit.

Unpredictable Postoperative Global Cerebral Infarction in the Patient of Williams Syndrome Accompanying Moyamoya Disease

We report a rare case of Williams syndrome accompanying moyamoya disease in whom postoperative global cerebral infarction occurred unpredictably. Williams syndrome is an uncommon hereditary disorder associated with the connective tissue abnormalities and cardiovascular disease. To our knowledge, our case report is the second case of Williams syndrome accompanying moyamoya disease. A 9-year-old boy was presented with right hemiparesis after second operation for coarctation of aorta. He was diagnosed as having Williams syndrome at the age of 1 year. Brain MRI showed left cerebral cortical infarction, and angiography showed severe stenosis of bilateral internal carotid arteries and moyamoya vessels. To reduce the risk of furthermore cerebral infarction, we performed indirect anastomosis successfully. Postoperatively, the patient recovered well, but at postoperative third day, without any unusual predictive abnormal findings the patient's pupils were suddenly dilated. Brain CT showed the global cerebral infarction. Despite of vigorous treatment, the patient was not recovered and fell in brain death one week later. We suggest that in this kind of labile patient with Williams syndrome accompanying moyamoya disease, postoperative sedation should be done with more thorough strict patient monitoring than usual moyamoya patients. Also, we should decide the revascularization surgery more cautiously than usual moyamoya disease. The possibility of unpredictable postoperative ischemic complication should be kept in mind.