Hydrocephalus in children with ruptured cerebral arteriovenous malformation.

Objective: Hydrocephalus is a strong determinant of poor neurological outcome after intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). In children, ruptured brain arteriovenous malformations (bAVMs) are the dominant cause of ICH. In a large prospective cohort of pediatric patients with ruptured bAVMs, the authors analyzed the rates and predictive factors of hydrocephalus requiring acute external ventricular drainage (EVD) or ventriculoperitoneal shunt (VPS).
Methods: The authors performed a single-center retrospective analysis of the data from a prospectively maintained database of children admitted for a ruptured bAVM since 2002. Admission clinical and imaging predictors of EVD and VPS placement were analyzed using univariate and multivariate statistical models.
Results: Among 114 patients (mean age 9.8 years) with 125 distinct ICHs due to ruptured bAVM, EVD and VPS were placed for 55/125 (44%) hemorrhagic events and 5/114 patients (4.4%), respectively. A multivariate nominal logistic regression model identified low initial Glasgow Coma Scale (iGCS) score, hydrocephalus on initial CT scan, the presence of intraventicular hemorrhage (IVH), and higher modified Graeb Scale (mGS) score as strongly associated with subsequent need for EVD (all p < 0.001). All children who needed a VPS had initial hydrocephalus requiring EVD and tended to have higher mGS scores.
Conclusions: In a large cohort of pediatric patients with ruptured bAVM, almost half of the patients required EVD and 4.4% required permanent VPS. Use of a low iGCS score and a semiquantitative mGS score as indicators of the IVH burden may be helpful for decision making in the emergency setting and thus improve treatment.