Clinical neurology and neurosurgery
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Clin Neurol Neurosurg · Jun 2000
Initial hyperglycemia as an indicator of severity of the ictus in poor-grade patients with spontaneous subarachnoid hemorrhage.
An association between hyperglycemia and outcome in spontaneous subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) has been sporadically reported. Our hypothesis was that hyperglycemia is a sign of central metabolic disturbance linked with specific appearances on computerized tomography (CT) scans reflecting different degrees of corresponding brain injury. The admission plasma glucose level, initial CT findings, and outcome after 6 months were analysed in a cohort of 99 patients with SAH in Hunt & Hess Grade IV or V. ⋯ Patients with mild CT findings (n=10) had the lowest glucose level (8.9+/-1.8 mmol/l; P=0.0082), whereas patients with severe findings (n=56) had the highest glucose (11.4+/-3.5 mmol/l; P=0.011). Despite association with clinical grade and extent of CT findings, logistic multiple regression revealed the admission plasma glucose level to be an independent prognosticator of outcome. The prognostic potential of the initial plasma glucose level may be beneficial in management protocols of poor-grade SAH patients.