Background and purpose: Hyperglycemia and inflammation are involved in the progression of spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (sICH)-induced brain injury, but their role in predicting clinical outcome is not clear. We sought to determine whether elevation of white blood cell count (WBC), C-reactive protein (CRP), and blood glucose (BG) concentration at presentation prognosticate poor outcome in sICH patients.
Methods: Between November 1, 2005 and October 31, 2009, 210 patients admitted to 2 intensive care units were prospectively consecutively evaluated after exclusion of patients with underlying inflammatory conditions. WBC, CRP, and BG were measured and ICH scores were calculated on first evaluation. Primary outcome was 30-day mortality. Secondary outcome was 30-day functional outcome using the Glasgow Outcome scale.
Results: The median CRP concentration was 7.85 mg/L (interquartile range, 4.0-12.0 mg/L), median WBC count was 8.05×10(9)/L (interquartile range, 6.45-9.9×10(9)/L) and median glucose concentration was 7.66 mmol/L (interquartile range, 6.11-10.83 mmol/L). At 30 days, 63 patients (30%) were dead and 101 (48.1%) had poor outcome (Glasgow Outcome scale score, 1-3). Higher WBC (P<0.001), CRP (P<0.05), and BG (P<0.001) were associated with mortality on univariate analyses, but only CRP remained associated with mortality (P<0.005) after adjustment for multiple confounders. CRP improved mortality prediction when added to the ICH score. None of the markers tested had significant associations with functional outcome.
Conclusions: Higher WBC, CRP, and BG are associated with increased mortality in sICH patients. Only CRP elevation portends higher risk of death independently of other indicators of sICH severity.