Subarachnoid haemorrhage in first and second degree relatives of patients with subarachnoid haemorrhage

Abstract

We prospectively collected a series of 163 patients with subarachnoid haemorrhage verified by computed tomography from the University Hospitals of Rotterdam, Utrecht, and Amsterdam, and for every patient we constructed a pedigree including all first and second degree relatives. All these relatives were interviewed by telephone in a standardised manner; they were asked about episodes of subarachnoid haemorrhage, sudden severe headache, stroke, and sudden death. For deceased relatives a next of kin was interviewed about the cause of death. When stroke or any other brain disease was reported, medical records were obtained if available. All histories and medical documents were reviewed according to strict criteria, defined in advance, for the diagnosis of subarachnoid haemorrhage. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to compare the incidence of subarachnoid haemorrhage in first and second degree relatives.