[Therapy for spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage]

Spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) is a common and serious disease. It is responsible for 10-17% of all strokes, and mortality exceeds 50%. A variety of underlying causes exist for ICH, advancing age and hypertension being the most important risk factors. Other causes of ICH include vascular malformations, coagulation disorders, and use of anticoagulants and thrombolytic agents. Treatment options comprise conservative as well as surgical management. In addition, a recently published clinical trial evaluating the use of activated recombinant Factor VII allows specific haemostatic therapies to be used in ICH treatment. That and other studies have significantly added to the understanding of the disease. The European Stroke Initiative, which represents the European Stroke Council, European Neurological Society, and European Federation of Neurological Societies, will soon publish recommendations for the management of spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhages. Those recommendations form the basis of this article.