Primary spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage in COVID-19 patients: differences among presentation patterns – A systematic review

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine if there are differences between the presentation patterns of hemorrhagic stroke (HS) associated to COVID-19. Methods: It was performed a systematic search based on PRISMA guidelines of the cases reported in PUBMED of HS associated to SARS-CoV-2 infection and we added to this sample cases from our own hospital cohort. Patients in the database were separated by groups according to presentation symptoms: if they debuted with neurological symptoms or debuted with pulmonary symptoms. Results: Seventy cases were included in the study. Patients that debuted with pulmonary symptoms accounted for 68.6% of the cases with an interval between the development of symptoms and the presentation of HS of 15.6 days. We found that the use of anticoagulants during hospitalization, multifocal image pattern, and the elevation of D-dimer, Ferritin, and lactate dehydrogenase levels were significantly associated with the group of pulmonary presentation, whereas the presence of hypertension during hospitalization, and a lower hemoglobin level was associated with the group of neurologic symptoms. Conclusion: Although HS associated with COVID-19 is a clinical entity with increasing evidence, it is necessary to establish that there are two forms of presentation with their own characteristics.