Solheim, Ole

Background The otic ganglion (OG) provides parasympathetic innervation to the cerebral circulation and cranial structures and may be involved in the pathophysiology of trigeminal autonomic headaches. This structure has never been targeted in any headache disorder. Objective To investigate the safety of injecting onabotulinumtoxin A (BTA) toward the OG in 10 patients with intractable chronic cluster headache and to collect efficacy data. Methods A total of 10 patients with chronic cluster headache were enrolled in this open‐label, multi‐dose pilot safety study. All patients were recruited and treated on an out‐patient basis at St Olav's University Hospital (Norway). In 5 patients each, the OG was the injection target with 12.5 IU of BTA or 25 IU, respectively. The primary outcome measure was adverse events (AEs) and the main secondary outcome was the number of attacks per week measured at baseline and in the second month following injection. Results For the primary endpoint, we analyzed data for all 10 patients. There were a total of 17 AEs in 6 of the 10 patients. All AEs were considered mild and disappeared by the end of follow‐up. The median number of attacks per week at baseline was 17.0 [7.8 to 25.8] vs 14.0 [7.3 to 20.0] in the second month following injection; difference: 3 (95%CI: −0.3 to 7.9), P = .063. Conclusions Injection with BTA toward the OG appears to be safe. We did not find a statistically significant reduction in the number of attacks per week at month 2 after injection compared to the baseline. This study suggests that the OG is not an important target for the treatment of chronic cluster headache. A future study employing more precise targeting of the OG may be indicated.

AbstractBackgroundAccurate and reliable clinical and radiological predictors of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) outcomes are needed to optimize treatment of ICH. The aim of this study was to investigate functional outcome and identify predictors of severe disability or death following ICH.Materials and methodsRetrospective population‐based study of spontaneous ICH. Clinical and radiological data were obtained from electronic medical records, and functional outcome estimated using the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) before ICH and at 3 and 12 months after ICH.ResultsFour hundred and fifty‐two patients were included (mean age 74.8 years, 45.6% females). Proportion of fatal outcome at 1 week was 22.1%, at 3 months 39.2%, and at 12 months 44.9%. Median mRS score before the ICH was 1 (interquartile range [IQR] 2); for survivors at 3 months, it was 5 (IQR 3); and at 12 months, it was 3 (IQR 2). Independent predictors of severe disability (mRS of 5) or death (mRS of 6) were use of oral antithrombotic drugs (OR 2.2, 95% CI 1.3–3.8, p = 0.04), mRS score before the ICH (OR 1.8, 95% CI 1.4–2.2, p < 0.001), Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) on admission (OR 8.3, 95% CI 3.5–19.7, p < 0.001), hematoma volume >60 ml (OR 4.5, 05% CI 2.0–10.2, p < 0.001), and intraventricular hematoma extension (OR 1.8, 95% CI 0.8–4.2, p < 0.001).ConclusionIntracerebral hemorrhage is associated with high mortality, and more than one third of survivors end up with severe disability or death 3 months later. Predictors of severe disability or death were use of oral antithrombotic drugs, functional disability prior to ICH, low GCS on admission, larger hematoma volume, and intraventricular hematoma extension.