Results of surgical treatment of intrasylvian hematomas due to ruptured intracranial aneurysms

In this retrospective study, the surgical outcome of patients with intrasylvian hematomas due to rupture of intracranial aneurysms was analyzed. The authors studied ten patients who underwent aneurysm surgery and evacuation of the hematoma within 12 h of the onset of bleeding. All patients had an intrasylvian hematoma classified with computerized tomography and all patients underwent pre-operative angiography. In all patients, the origin of bleeding was a middle cerebral artery aneurysm, with the exception of one patient whose bleeding originated from a posterior communicating artery aneurysm. Three patients achieved good recovery without any significant neurological deficit and four achieved good recovery with moderate disabilities. One patient died due to pneumonia and two were in a vegetative state. Notably, three patients who were comatose (Hunt and Hess Grade V) at the time of presentation achieved good recovery following surgery. In this study, neurological status at presentation did not predict the outcome. The only significant prognostic factor in those patients who had intrasylvian hematoma was early surgery within 12 h of the bleeding. We suggest that early surgical treatment be performed in patients with intrasylvian hematoma, regardless of the neurological findings and grade on admission. Pre-operative angiography seems to be essential in identifying the source of bleeding.