• Alexandra Czap, John P Shoup, Jonathan Winkler, Ilene Staff, Gil Fortunato, Carl Malchoff, Louise D McCullough, and Lauren H Sansing.
• University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, Connecticut. Electronic address: alexandra.czap@gmail.com.
• J Stroke Cerebrovasc Dis. 2013 Nov 1; 22 (8): e602-9.

BackgroundHypothyroidism is associated with increased ischemic stroke risk but paradoxically results in more favorable outcomes once a stroke occurs. Whether a similar pattern emerges in patients with primary intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is unknown.MethodsA retrospective analysis of a prospective stroke center database was performed to analyze the clinical presentation and outcomes of hypothyroid patients with spontaneous ICH. Patients were classified into groups with no history of thyroid disease (n=491) versus those with hypothyroidism (n=72). Hypothyroid patients were further classified into patients receiving thyroid replacement on admission or those without replacement. The Glasgow Coma Scale, ICH score, and the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) were used to assess the initial severity. Outcome was assessed by admission to discharge change in the NIHSS and modified Barthel Index (mBI), in-hospital mortality, discharge disposition and mortality, and the mBI at 3 and 12 months.ResultsThere were 563 patients in the analysis. Seventy-two patients had a history of hypothyroidism, and of these, 63% received thyroid hormone replacement. Patients receiving replacement had significantly lower NIHSS at presentation (median 4 [IQR 1, 11]) compared with either the control group (median 8 [IQR 3, 16]) or hypothyroid patients without replacement (median 9 [IQR 3.8, 15.5]; P=.004). There was no difference in in-hospital and 3-month mortality or functional outcomes at 3 and 12 months among the groups.ConclusionsThis study suggests that the history of hypothyroidism does not affect clinical severity or outcome after ICH.Copyright © 2013 National Stroke Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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