intracerebral haemorrhage

Last edited 04/2022 and last reviewed 05/2022

Intracerebral haemorrhage is bleeding into the brain substance with the formation of a focal haematoma. It may rupture through the cortical surface to produce an associated "subarachnoid" haemorrhage. Alternatively, it may rupture into the ventricular system to produce an intraventricular haemorrhage.

ICH accounts for about 10% of all strokes. It is slightly more common among US blacks and individuals of Chinese and Japanese origin.

Blood pressure management and ICH (1)

• consider rapid blood pressure lowering for people with acute intracerebral haemorrhage who do not have any of the exclusions * and who:
  • present within 6 hours of symptom onset and
  • have a systolic blood pressure of between 150 and 220 mmHg
• taking into account the risk of harm, consider rapid blood pressure lowering on a case-by-case basis for people with acute intracerebral haemorrhage who do not have any of the exclusions listed * and who:
  • present beyond 6 hours of symptom onset or
  • have a systolic blood pressure greater than 220 mmHg
• when rapidly lowering blood pressure in people with acute intracerebral haemorrhage, aim to reach a systolic blood pressure of 140 mmHg or lower while ensuring that the magnitude drop does not exceed 60 mmHg within 1 hour of starting treatment
• when considering blood pressure lowering in young people aged 16 or 17 with acute intracerebral haemorrhage who do not have any of the exclusions listed*, seek advice from a paediatric specialist
• * exclusions:
  • do not offer rapid blood pressure lowering to people who:
    • have an underlying structural cause (for example, tumour, arteriovenous malformation or aneurysm)
    • have a score on the Glasgow Coma Scale of below 6
    • are going to have early neurosurgery to evacuate the haematoma
    • have a massive haematoma with a poor expected prognosis
• the NICE committee noted:
  • committee decided to remove the aim of reaching the target within 1 hour because only a minority (33.4%) of participants in the INTERACT2 trial achieved the target of 140 mmHg within 1 hour and, more importantly, to avoid the potential harm of reducing systolic blood pressure by more than 60 mmHg in the first hour
  • was evidence that rapidly lowering blood pressure does not increase the risk of neurological deterioration caused by reduced blood flow to the brain and has the potential to improve quality of life
  • agreed that while there is some evidence that rapid blood pressure lowering treatment is beneficial, there may be an increase in adverse renal events, and they were concerned about the lack of evidence in people who are frail
  • evidence that a moderate reduction of up to 60 mmHg within the first hour was associated with better outcomes such as functional independence
    • a reduction of more than 60 mmHg within 1 hour was associated with significantly worse outcomes such as renal failure, early neurological deterioration, and death, compared with standard treatment
    • therefore, the committee agreed that a large reduction of 60 mmHg or more within 1 hour should be avoided

Reference:

• NICE (April 2022). Stroke and transient ischaemic attack in over 16s: diagnosis and initial management