ANAID‐ICH nomogram for predicting unfavorable outcome after intracerebral hemorrhage

OBJECTIVE: Diffusion‐weighted imaging lesions (DWILs) are associated with unfavorable outcome in intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). We proposed a novel predictive nomogram incorporating DWILs. METHODS: A total of 738 patients with primary ICH in a tertiary hospital were prospectively enrolled as a training cohort. DWILs were defined as remote focal hyperintensities on DWI corresponding to low intensities on apparent diffusion coefficient images and remote from the focal hematoma. The outcome of interest was modified Rankin Scale scores of 4–6 at 90 days after onset. Multivariate logistic regression was used to construct a nomogram. Model performance was tested in the training cohort and externally validated with respect to discrimination, calibration, and clinical usefulness in another institute. Additionally, the nomogram was compared with the ICH score in terms of predictive ability. RESULTS: Overall, 153 (20.73%) and 23 (15.54%) patients developed an unfavorable outcome in the training and validation cohorts, respectively. The multivariate analysis revealed that age, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score, anemia, infratentorial location, presence of DWILs, and prior ICH were associated with unfavorable outcome. Our ANAID‐ICH nomogram was constructed according to the aforementioned variables; the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.842 and 0.831 in the training and validation sets, respectively. With regard to the 90‐day outcome, the nomogram showed a significantly higher predictive value than the ICH score in both cohorts. CONCLUSIONS: The ANAID‐ICH nomogram comprising age, NIHSS score, anemia, infratentorial location, presence of DWILs, and prior ICH may facilitate the identification of patients at higher risk for an unfavorable outcome.