The stress hyperglycemia ratio predicts early hematoma expansion and poor outcomes in patients with spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage

BACKGROUND: Different from diabetic hyperglycemia, stress-induced hyperglycemia (SIH) can better reflect elevated blood glucose owing to intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). However, studies about the outcome of ICH patients with SIH are still very limited. AIMS: This study aimed to investigate whether SIH measured by stress-induced hyperglycemia ratio (SHR) was associated with hematoma expansion and poor outcomes in patients with ICH. METHODS: A consecutive series of patients with spontaneous ICH from two clinical centers admitted within 24 h after symptom onset were enrolled for prospective analysis. SHR was defined as admission fasting blood glucose divided by estimated average glucose [1.59 × Hemoglobin A1c (%) − 2.59]. This study investigated the association between SHR and hematoma expansion, and short-term and long-term poor outcomes using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. RESULTS: A total of 313 ICH patients were enrolled in the study. SHR was markedly higher in patients with hematoma expansion and poor outcomes (p < 0.001). The multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated SHR independently associated with hematoma expansion (p < 0.001) and poor outcomes, including secondary neurological deterioration within 48 h, 30-day mortality, and 3-month poor modified Rankin Scale (mRS 4–6) (p < 0.001), while the blood glucose only predicted 30-day mortality. Meanwhile, the diagnostic accuracy of SHR exhibited by area under the curve in receiver operating characteristic analysis was statistically equal to or higher than the well-known predictors. CONCLUSION: SHR is a reliable predictor for early hematoma expansion and poor outcomes in patients with ICH.