Health status and life satisfaction after decompressive craniectomy for malignant middle cerebral artery infarction

Objectives –  To study the long‐term outcome in patients with malignant middle cerebral artery (MCA) infarction treated with decompressive craniectomy. The outcome is described in terms of survival, impairment, disabilities and life satisfaction. Materials and methods –  Patients were examined at a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Acta neurologica Scandinavica 2008-05, Vol.117 (5), p.305-310
Main Authors: Skoglund, T. S., Eriksson-Ritzén, C., Sörbo, A., Jensen, C., Rydenhag, B.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Aged
Biological and medical sciences
Craniotomy - methods
Decompression, Surgical - methods
Female
Glasgow Outcome Scale
Health Status
hemicraniectomy
Human mycoses
Humans
Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery - psychology
Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery - surgery
Infectious diseases
Longitudinal Studies
Male
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
middle cerebral artery infarction
Mycoses
Mycoses of the nervous system
Neurology
outcome
Personal Satisfaction
Quality of Life - psychology
stroke
surgery
Treatment Outcome
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Summary:Objectives –  To study the long‐term outcome in patients with malignant middle cerebral artery (MCA) infarction treated with decompressive craniectomy. The outcome is described in terms of survival, impairment, disabilities and life satisfaction. Materials and methods –  Patients were examined at a minimum of 1 year (mean 2.9, range 1–6) after the surgery and classified according to the Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS), the National Institutes of Health Stroke scale (NIHSS), the Barthel Index (BI), the short‐form health survey (SF‐36) and the life satisfaction checklist (LiSat‐11). Results –  Eighteen patients were included. The long‐term survival was 78%. The mean NIHSS score was 13.8 (range 6–20). No patient was left in a vegetative state. The mean BI was 63.9 (5‐100). The SF‐36 scores showed that the patients’ view of their health was significantly lower in most items compared with that of a reference group. According to the LiSat checklist, 83% found their life satisfying/rather satisfying and 17% found their life rather dissatisfying/dissatisfying. Conclusion –  We conclude that the patients remained in an impaired neurological condition, but had fairly good insight into their limitations. Although their life satisfaction was lower compared with that of the controls, the majority felt that life in general could still be satisfying.
ISSN:0001-6314
1600-0404
DOI:10.1111/j.1600-0404.2007.00967.x