Subarachnoid Hemorrhage; An Angiographic Evaluation in Iran

Background/ The evaluation of different aspects of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) can effectively improve the outcomes of this fatal disease. This article presents some information about angiographic and epidemiologic findings in 580 cases of SAH in Iran. We reviewed the records of 580 SAH patients in whom the disease was proved by brain CT scan and/or lumbar puncture. In all of the patients, a standard subtraction brain angiography was done. Sixty percent of all patients were male and about sixty percent of patients were aged 30-60years. The angiogram showed: aneurysm in 23.4%, arteriovenous malformation in 14.1%, and miscellaneous problems in 6.3%. The angiogram was normal in the remained 56%. The mean age of aneurysm patients was 46 years, and 59% of them were male. 33.6% of aneurysms resided in A.C.A, 31% in I.C.A (14.1% of total aneurysms located in P.Comm.A), 24.8% in MCA and 10.7% of aneurysm were located in posterior circulation. The high prevalence of the disease in men could be due to the relatively high exposure of men to certain risk factors, such as smoking, or the ethnic factors may play a role. The lower mean age could be due to high percentage of men. Low prevalence of P.Comm.A aneurysms could be due to ethnic factors.