Intraventricular thrombolysis in intracerebral hemorrhage requiring ventriculostomy: a decade-long real-world experience.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Intraventricular thrombolysis (IVT) is a promising treatment in facilitating intraventricular clot resolution after intraventricular hemorrhage. We examined in-hospital outcomes and resource utilization after thrombolysis in patients with intraventricular hemorrhage requiring ventriculostomy in a real-world setting. METHODS We identified adult patients with primary diagnosis of nontraumatic intracerebral hemorrhage requiring ventriculostomy from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample from 2002 to 2011. We compared demographic and hospital characteristics, comorbidities, inpatient outcomes, and resource utilization measures between patients treated with IVT and those managed with ventriculostomy, but without IVT. Population estimates were extrapolated using standard Nationwide Inpatient Sample weighting algorithms. RESULTS We included 34 044 patients in the analysis, of whom 1133 (3.3%) received IVT. The thrombolysis group had significantly lower inpatient mortality (32.4% versus 41.6%; P=0.001) and it remained lower after controlling for baseline demographics, hospital characteristics, comorbidity, case severity, and withdrawal of care status (adjusted odds ratio, 0.670; 95% confidence interval, 0.520-0.865; P=0.002). There was a trend toward favorable discharge (home or rehabilitation) among the thrombolysis cohort (adjusted odds ratio, 1.335; 95% confidence interval, 0.983-1.812; P=0.064). The adjusted rates of bacterial meningitis and ventricular shunt placement were similar between groups. The thrombolysis group had longer length of stay and higher inflation-adjusted cost of care, but cost of care per day length of stay was similar to the non-IVT group. CONCLUSIONS IVT for intracerebral hemorrhage requiring ventriculostomy resulted in lower inpatient mortality and a trend toward favorable discharge outcome with similar rates of inpatient complications compared with the non-IVT group.