Journal of neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry
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J. Neurol. Neurosurg. Psychiatr. · Apr 2017
Review Meta AnalysisIntensive blood pressure lowering in patients with acute intracerebral haemorrhage: clinical outcomes and haemorrhage expansion. Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised trials.
It is unclear whether intensive lowering of blood pressure (BP) at the acute phase of intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) is beneficial. We performed a meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) to assess whether intensive BP lowering in patients with acute ICH is safe and effective in improving clinical outcomes. ⋯ For patients with acute ICH similar to those included in RCTs and without contraindication to acute BP treatment, intensive acute BP lowering is safe, but does not seem to provide an incremental clinical benefit in terms of functional outcomes. The effect of intensive BP lowering on significant haematoma expansion at 24 hours warrants further investigation.