Abstract WP59: A Clot Burden Score Predicts Functional Outcome and Neurological Complications After Cerebral Venous Sinus Thrombosis

Abstract

Background and purpose: Involvement of deep venous structures is associated with worse outcomes in patients with cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST); however, the impact of clot burden has not been studied. The aim of this study was to assess the value of a novel quantitative clot burden score as an independent predictor of clinical outcomes. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed all patients admitted to University of Iowa Health Care with CVST between 2004-2014. All patients received standard of care medical management per AHA/ASA recommendations. The degree of the thrombosis was categorized in admission MR venograms as (partial=1 vs. complete occlusion=2). Clot burden scores were computed as the sum of the thrombosis degree in the following vessels: cerebral veins (cortical veins, internal cerebral, vein of Rosenthal, vein of Galen) and cerebral sinuses (superior sagittal, inferior sagittal, straight, torcula, transverse/sigmoid). The primary outcome was modified Rankin Scale (mRS) at discharge. Secondary outcomes included hemorrhage, infarction, and cerebral edema. Multiple regressions were conducted to examine effects of clot burden scores on each of the four outcomes. Results: 115 patients met inclusion criteria, 76 women, and mean age 42. Thrombosis in cerebral veins area was noted in 58(50%), clot burden score Median=4, IQR=2; while 108(96%) had thrombosis in the cerebral sinuses area, Median=4, IQR=5. Clot burden in cerebral veins (p=.005) but not in cerebral sinuses, was associated with worse discharge mRS, r= .22. This effect remained significant when adjusting for age and gender (p=.002), but not when adjusting for complications including ICH, infarct, edema. Importantly, higher clot burden score in the cerebral veins predicted ICH (OR=1.73, p<.001), infarct size (OR=1.66, p<.001), and edema (OR=1.71, p<.001). Conclusion: Quantitative clot burden measurement of the cerebral veins conveys additional prediction on outcomes of CVST. Our findings suggest that the worse clinical outcomes associated with clot burden in the cerebral veins may be mediated by ICH, infarct size, and/or edema. The structural differences between the cerebral veins and sinuses may play a role in the variability in clinical outcomes among patients with CVST.