Abstract W P257: Predictors of the CT Angiography Spot Sign in Deep and Lobar Intracerebral Hemorrhage

Abstract

Objectives: Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) patients with CT angiography (CTA) spot sign are at increased risk of hematoma expansion and poor outcome. Since ICH is often the acute manifestation of a chronic cerebral vasculopathy, we investigated whether different clinical or imaging characteristics predict spot sign presence in patients with different underlying vasculopathies. Using ICH location as a surrogate for hypertension-related ICH and cerebral amyloid angiopathy-related ICH, we identified risk factors associated with spot sign. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed a prospective cohort of consecutive spontaneous ICH patients with available CTA. Spot sign presence was ascertained by two independent readers blinded to clinical data. We assessed potential predictors of spot sign be performing uni- and multivariable logistic regression, analyzing deep and lobar ICH separately. RESULTS: 649 patients were eligible, 291 (45%) deep and 358 (55%) lobar ICH. Median time from symptom onset to CTA was 4.5 (IQR 5.2) and 5.7 (IQR 7.4) hours in patients with deep and lobar ICH, respectively. At least one spot sign was present in 76 (26%) deep and 103 (29%) lobar ICH patients. In mutivariable logistic regression, independent predictors of spot sign in deep ICH were warfarin (OR 2.82 [95%CI 1.06-7.57]; p=0.03), time from symptom onset to CTA (OR 0.9 [95%CI 0.81-0.97]; p=0.02), and baseline ICH volume (OR 1.27 [95%CI 1.14-1.43]; p=2.5E-5; per 10 mL increase). Predictors of spot sign in lobar ICH were preexisting dementia (OR 2.7 [95%CI 1.15-6.43]; p=0.02), warfarin (OR 4.01 [95%CI 1.78-9.29]; p=0.009), and baseline ICH volume (OR 1.27 [95%CI 1.17-1.39]; p=5.4E-8; per 10 mL increase). As expected, spot sign presence was a strong predictor of hematoma expansion in both deep (OR 3.52 [95%CI 1.72-7.2]; p=0.0005) and lobar ICH (OR 6.53 [95%CI 3.23-13.44]; p=2.2E-7). CONCLUSIONS: The most potent associations with spot sign are shared by deep and lobar ICH, suggesting that ICH caused by different vasculopathic processes share biological features. The relationship between preexisting dementia and spot sign in lobar ICH, but not deep ICH, suggests that ICH occurring in the context of more advanced cerebral amyloid angiopathy may be more likely to have prolonged bleeding.