Background Atrial fibrillation (AF) represents a major indication for oral anticoagulants (OAC) that contribute to spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). This study evaluated AF prevalence among patients with ICH, temporal trends, and early functional outcomes and death of patients. Methods and Results Patients with first-ever ICH were prospectively recorded in the population-based stroke registry of Dijon, France, (2006-2017). Association between AF and early outcome of patients with ICH (ordinal modified Rankin Scale score and death at discharge) were analyzed using ordinal and logistic regressions. Among 444 patients with ICH, 97 (21.9%) had AF, including 65 (14.6%) with previously known AF treated with OAC, and 13 (2.9%) with newly diagnosed AF. AF prevalence rose from 17.2% (2006-2011) to 25.8% (2012-2017) (P-trend=0.05). An increase in the proportion of AF treated with OAC (11.3% to 17.5%, P-trend=0.09) and newly diagnosed AF (1.5% to 4.2%, P-trend=0.11) was observed. In multivariable analyses, after adjustment for premorbid OAC, AF was not significantly associated with ordinal modified Rankin Scale score (odds ratio [OR], 1.29; 95% CI, 0.69-2.42) or death (OR, 0.89; 95% CI, 0.40-1.96) in patients with ICH. Nevertheless, adjusted premorbid OAC use remained highly associated with a higher probability of death (OR, 2.53; 95% CI, 1.11-5.78). Conclusions AF prevalence and use of OAC among patients with ICH increased over time. Premorbid use of OAC was associated with poor outcome after ICH, thus suggesting a need to better identify ICH risk before initiating or pursuing OAC therapy in patients with AF, and to develop acute treatment and secondary prevention strategies after ICH in patients with AF.
Keywords: anticoagulants; atrial fibrillation; epidemiology; intracerebral hemorrhage; outcomes.