Warfarin-associated intraventricular hemorrhage

In this study, we have reviewed our experience with anticoagulation-associated intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH). Our goal was to determine if IVH is also an independent prognosticator of fatal outcome in patients with anticoagulation-associated intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH).

This study is a retrospective analysis of medical records and computed tomographic imaging. Eighty-eight patients with warfarin-associated ICH were analysed, including eight patients with predominant IVH.

There was a very low rate of hemorrhage extension in patients with predominant IVH. Despite that, those patients had 50% 30 day mortality. Overall patients with ICH had 45% 30 day mortality. Ventricular extension raised mortality in ICH patients to 75%, while the absence of ventricular extension carried only 23% 30 day mortality. IVH was significantly associated with 30 day mortality (p<0.001). Panventricular extension was uniformly fatal in patients with ICH and carried 75% 30 day mortality in patients with predominant IVH. On a multivariate logistic regression model including age, ICH volume and IVH, ICH volume (p<0.001) and IVH (p = 0.003) remained independently associated with early mortality.

Extension of anticoagulation-associated ICH into ventricular system caused a high mortality, especially in patients with panventricular involvement. IVH is an independent predictor of early death in these patients. In our experience, the majority of IVH do not expand over time and poor outcome appears to be related to the magnitude of the initial insult.