Introduction: Intracerebral hemorrhage (HIC) represents 10-30% of all stroke. Epidemiological studies have shown factors associated with its high mortality, but those which might lead to lower morbidity are little known.
Objective: To find the factors which may influence the functional state of a series of patients with intracerebral hemorrhage.
Patients and methods: We made a prospective study of 203 patients with intracerebral hemorrhage. We recorded vascular risk factors, arterial blood pressure, laboratory and neuroimaging parameters obtained on admission. The functional condition when discharged from hospital was evaluated on the Rankin Scale, in three categories: independent (Rankin 0-1), partially dependent (Rankin 2-3) and totally dependent patients (Rankin 4-5).
Results: There was a 23.2% death rate. Of the 156 patients who survived, at the time of hospital discharge 35.8% had a score of 0-1, 50.6% a score of 2-3 and 13.4% a score of 4-5 on the Rankin Scale. Age (p < 0.005), hyperglycaemia (p < 0.05) and size of hemorrhage (p < 0.05) were associated with increased morbidity.
Conclusions: The functional condition on hospital discharge was better in younger patients with lower levels of glycemia on admission and smaller hematomas on CT.