Impairment of Cerebral Perfusion and Infarct Patterns Attributable to Vasospasm After Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

Abstract

Background and Purpose— The objective of this study was to investigate disturbance of perfusion and infarct patterns attributable to cerebral vasospasm (CVS) after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). Methods— One hundred seventeen patients with aneurysmal SAH specifically selected at high risk for CVS were enrolled in this prospective study. One hundred twelve patients underwent surgical (n=63) or endovascular (n=59) therapy. For assessment of CVS, relative diameter changes of proximal and distal vessel segments on follow-up angiography at day 7±3 after SAH were analyzed in relation to baseline measurements, and cerebral circulation times were measured. Postprocedure MRI was undertaken selectively at four time points: within 3 days, between days 4 and 6, day 7 to 14, and day 15 to 28 from onset of SAH, including perfusion- and diffusion-weighted images. Procedure-related lesions were excluded and CVS-associated infarct patterns analyzed. Results— Occurrence of angiographic CVS was as high as 87.5% between days...