Acute Blood Pressure Management in Intracerebral Hemorrhage: Equipoise Resists an Attack.

Abstract

There are 2 competing rationales for acute blood pressure (BP) management in primary intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). A conservative approach is predicated on the possibility that cerebral blood flow is passively dependent on perfusion pressure, whereas an aggressive approach has been hypothesized to improve outcomes via a reduction in early hematoma expansion. Although the latter is a biologically plausible hypothesis, this relationship has not been consistently demonstrated in retrospective or prospective studies, likely reflecting the fact that hematoma expansion is dependent on multiple factors, in particular the time from symptom onset to diagnostic scan, and baseline volume.1 The most effective way to address this clinical equipoise is, therefore, a randomized controlled trial of the 2 different BP management strategies. In the ATACH-II trial (Antihypertensive Treatment of Acute Cerebral Hemorrhage II), 1000 patients were randomized to a systolic BP (SBP) target of 110 to 139 mm Hg or 140 to 179 mm Hg, after the Data Safety Monitoring Board–recommended trial suspension on the basis of a futility analysis.2 Despite a robust and early difference in achieved BP between the 2 groups, the 90-day mortality and disability rate was unaffected (38.7% versus 37.7%; P =0.84). The reasons for this lack of treatment effect are not clear. There was no effect on the frequency of hematoma expansion, although the trend was in favor …