Intracerebral haemorrhage in a referral hospital in the central-western region of Mexico

Introduction. Intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) has received little attention in studies in Mexico. Isolated reports talk of high frequency, its importance as a disorder among young people, its being mainly located in the lobar regions and a high rate of recurrence. Aims. The objective of this study was to characterise the clinical, radiological, therapeutic and prognostic spectrum of ICH in a general hospital in the central-western region of Mexico. Patients and methods. The study involved 270 consecutive patients over the age of 15 years with spontaneous ICH who were hospitalised in the Neurology and Neurosurgical Service in the Antiguo Hospital Civil de Guadalajara between the years 2000 and 2002. Their clinical history and progression was known at least on discharge from the hospital. Results. The mean age was 63 years (12% under 40 years old) with no predominance according to gender (53% males). Arterial hypertension was the main risk factor in 69%, followed by obesity in 38%. There were no differences in the Glasgow administered on admission in three pre-established subgroups. The ICH was ganglionic in 64% of cases and lobar in 24%. Arterial hypertension was the principal cause of ICH in 76%. Ventricular aperture was noted in 53%. All the patients were treated in a general ward. Mortality in the acute phase occurred in 49%, although a poor progression was observed in 83%. Overall recurrence was 13%. Outpatient follow-up was poor Conclusions. ICH shares most of the features reported in Anglo-Saxon series including aetiology and location. In our population, mortality and recurrence are high with important sequelae. The high frequency of ICH (40%) may represent a bias in the selection of hospitals.