An association of prior statin use with decreased perihematomal edema.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the impact of statins on perihematomal edema following spontaneous supratentorial intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). BACKGROUND: Hematoma expansion and evolution of perihematomal edema are most commonly responsible for neurological deterioration following ICH. A possible role of statins in reducing perihematomal edema has been suggested based on studies in animal models. METHODS: Records of consecutive ICH patients admitted to The Johns Hopkins Hospital from 1999 to 2006 were reviewed. Patients with ICH related to trauma or underlying lesions (e.g., brain tumors, aneurysms, and arterio-venous malformations) and of infratentorial location were excluded. Absolute and relative perihematomal edema were assessed on initial head CT. Using regression analysis, the impact of prior statin use on absolute and relative edema at presentation was assessed correcting for other factors possibly impacting perihematomal edema, such as age, coagulopathy, aspirin use, admission mean arterial pressure (MAP), and blood glucose. RESULTS: A total of 125 consecutive ICH patients were studied. Patients with prior statin exposure had a mean edema volume of 13.2 +/- 9.2 cc compared to 22.3 +/- 18.3 cc in patients who were not using statins at the time of ICH. Following multiple linear regression analysis, we have identified a statistically significant association between prior statin use with reduced early absolute perihematomal edema (P = 0.035). Mean relative perihematomal edema was significantly lower in patients on statins at presentation (0.44) as opposed to 0.81 in patients with no prior statin use. This difference remained statistically significant (P = 0.021) after correcting for other variables. CONCLUSIONS: We report the association between statin use prior to ICH and decreased absolute and relative perihematomal edema. A prospective study analyzing the role of statins in perihematomal edema reduction and the resultant effect on mortality and functional outcomes following ICH is warranted.

Prior statin use reduces mortality in intracerebral hemorrhage.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of blood glucose, coagulopathy, seizures and prior statin and aspirin use on clinical outcome following intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). BACKGROUND: Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) accounts for 10-15% of all strokes with mortality rates approaching 50%. Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), ICH volume, age, pulse pressure, ICH location, intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) and hydrocephalus are known to impact 30-day survival following ICH and are included in various prediction models. The role of other clinical variables in the long-term outcome of these patients is less clear. METHODS: Records of consecutive ICH patients admitted to The Johns Hopkins Hospital from 1999 to 2006 were reviewed. Patients with ICH related to trauma or underlying lesions (e.g. brain tumors, aneurysms, arterio-venous malformations) and of infratentorial location were excluded. The impact of admission blood glucose, coagulopathy, seizures on presentation and prior statin and aspirin use on 30-day mortality and functional outcomes at discharge was assessed using dichotomized Modified Rankin Scale (dMRS) and Glasgow Outcomes scale (dGOS). Other variables known to impact outcomes that were included in the multiple logistic regression analysis were age, admission GCS, pulse pressure, ICH volume, ICH location, volume of IVH and hydrocephalus. RESULTS: A total of 314 patients with ICH were identified, 125 met inclusion criteria. Patients' age ranged from 34 to 90 years (mean 63.5), 57.6 % were male. Mean ICH volume was 32.09 cc (range 1-214 cc). Following multiple logistic regression analysis, prior statin use (P = 0.05) was found to be associated with decreased mortality with a greater than 12-fold odds of survival while admission blood glucose (P = 0.023) was associated with increased 30-day mortality. Coagulopathy, seizures on presentation, and prior aspirin use had no significant impact on 30-day mortality or outcomes at discharge in our study cohort. CONCLUSIONS: The significant association of prior statin use with decreased mortality warrants prospective evaluation of the use of statins following ICH.