Study on Prognosis of Acutely Ruptured Intracranial Aneurysms

This Dutch observational study follows patients who have experienced a subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) caused by a ruptured brain aneurysm — a sudden and life-threatening event where a blood vessel in the brain bursts, flooding the space around the brain with blood. The study tracks long-term outcomes including survival, neurological function, quality of life, and risk of re-bleeding, aiming to better understand which patient and aneurysm factors predict good versus poor outcomes. This knowledge is essential for guiding treatment decisions. Adults 18 or older with a confirmed SAH caused by an intracranial aneurysm, diagnosed within six months, and who can provide written informed consent are eligible. Patients whose bleeding is from a traumatic injury, a perimesencephalic (low-risk) pattern, or from a vascular malformation other than an aneurysm are excluded, as are those who do not speak Dutch. Ruptured brain aneurysms are devastating — carrying a mortality rate of about 30-40% in the first month alone, and leaving many survivors with cognitive deficits, fatigue, and emotional difficulties. Despite advances in surgical and endovascular treatment, predicting who will recover well remains difficult. This registry-style study builds the long-term outcome data that clinicians need to counsel patients and families accurately, and that researchers need to design better treatments.