Prevalence and clinical predictors of spasticity after intracerebral hemorrhage.

Background: Spasticity is a common complication of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). However, no consensus exists on the relation between spasticity and initial clinical findings after ICH. Methods: This retrospective study enrolled adult patients with a history of ICH between January 2012 and October 2020. The modified Ashworth scale was used to assess spasticity. A trained image analyst traced all ICH lesions. Multivariable logistic regression was used to examine the association between ICH lesion sites and spasticity. Results: We finally analyzed 304 patients (mean age 54.86 ± 12.93 years; 72.04% men). The incidence of spasticity in patients with ICH was 30.92%. Higher National Institutes of Health stroke scale (NIHSS) scores were associated with an increased predicted probability for spasticity (odds ratio, OR = 1.153 [95% confidence interval, CI 1.093–1.216], p <.001). Logistic regression analysis revealed that lower age, higher NIHSS scores, and drinking were associated with an increased risk of moderate‐to‐severe spasticity (OR = 0.965 [95% CI 0.939–0.992], p =.013; OR = 1.068 [95% CI 1.008–1.130], p =.025; OR = 4.809 [95% CI 1.671–13.840], p =.004, respectively). However, smoking and ICH in the thalamus were associated with a reduced risk of moderate‐to‐severe spasticity (OR = 0.200 [95% CI 0.071–0.563], p =.002; OR = 0.405 [95% CI 0.140–1.174], p =.046, respectively) compared with ICH in the basal ganglia. Conclusions: Our results suggest that ICH lesion locations are at least partly associated with post‐stroke spasticity rather than the latter simply being a physiological reaction to ICH itself. The predictors for spasticity after ICH were age, NIHSS scores, past medical history, and ICH lesion sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]