Should Decompressive Surgery Be Performed in Malignant Cerebral Venous Thrombosis?

Abstract

Background and Purpose— In malignant cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) patients, emergency decompressive surgery has been suggested as a life-saving procedure. We report 12 patients with malignant CVT, among whom 8 underwent operation. Methods— Retrospective study of 12 patients from 3 stroke units who had a malignant CVT as defined: (1) supratentorial cortical lesions attributable to superficial venous system thrombosis with or without sinus involvement; (2) with clinical (decreased consciousness and dilated pupils) or radiological signs of transtentorial herniation; (3) either at onset or after worsening despite heparin therapy. Surgery or abstention was decided individually by neurosurgeons on call. Results— There were 9 women and 3 men with a mean age of 45±15 years. The delay between heparin therapy and signs of malignancy ranged from 2 to 30 hours. At malignant worsening all but 1 patient had hemorrhagic lesions; the median deviation of septum pellucidum was 12 mm (interquartile range, 6.7–13); 5 patients (including 3 who underwent operation) had a unilateral dilated pupil; and 4 (2 who underwent operation) had bilateral dilated pupils. Eight patients underwent surgical decompression, external decompression in 4, both external and internal decompression in 3, and internal decompression in 1. The 4 patients who did not undergo operation died within 1 to 5 days after diagnosis. One patient who underwent operation died of a pulmonary embolism. The 7 others survived, with, at last follow-up (median, 23.1 months; interquartile range, 19.7–45.6), an excellent recovery of mRS 0 or 1 in 6 and mRS 3 in 1. Conclusion— Decompressive surgery may save lives and may even allow a good functional outcome in malignant CVT, even in patients with bilateral dilated pupils.