Tripartite intensive intervention for prevention of rebleeding in elderly patients with hypertensive cerebral hemorrhage

Abstract

Background: Hypertensive cerebral hemorrhage (HICH) is the rupture and bleeding of vessels of the cerebral parenchyma caused by continuously elevated or violently fluctuating blood pressure. The condition is characterized by high disability and high mortality. Hematoma formation and resulting space-occupying effects following intracerebral hemorrhage are among the key causes of impaired neurological function and disability. Consequently, minimally invasive clearance of the hematoma is undertaken for the treatment of HICH because it can effectively relieve intracranial hypertension. Therefore, special attention should be given to the quality of medical and nursing interventions in the convalescent period after minimally invasive hematoma clearance.

Aim: The study aim was to determine the value of intensive intervention, including doctors, nurses, and patient families, for the prevention of rebleeding in elderly patients with HICH during the first hospitalization for rehabilitation after the ictal event.

Methods: A total of 150 elderly HICH patients with minimally invasive hematoma evacuation in our hospital between May 2018 and May 2020 were selected and equally divided into two groups of 75 each by their planned intervention. The control group was given conventional nursing intervention and the observation group was given tripartite intensive intervention. The length of hospital stay, cost, complication rate, satisfaction rate, and rebleeding rate during hospitalization were recorded. Changes in cerebral blood flow indicators were recorded in both groups. Changes in the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score, quality of life index (QLI) score, and health behavior score were evaluated at the National Institutes of Health.

Results: Duration of hospitalization was shorter in the in the observation group than in the control group, the hospitalization cost was less than in the control group, and the rate of rebleeding during hospitalization was lower than in the control group (all P < 0.05). There were no significant differences between the two groups before treatment (all P > 0.05). The mean flow rate (Q_mean) and mean velocity (V_mean) of the two groups increased (P < 0.05), and the dynamic resistance and peripheral resistance decreased (P < 0.05). The Q_mean and V_mean in the intervention group were higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). Moreover, the dynamic resistance and peripheral resistance of the blood vessels were also lower in the intervention group than in the control group (P < 0.05). The difference in health behavior scores between the two groups before treatment was not significant (P > 0.05). In both groups, the scores for healthy behaviors such as emotion control, medication adherence, dietary management, exercise management, and self-monitoring were higher after than before treatment (P < 0.05), and the scores of healthy behaviors in the intervention group were higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in the NIHSS and QLI scores between the two groups before treatment (P > 0.05). The QLI scores of the two groups increased (P < 0.05), and the NIHSS scores decreased (P < 0.05). The QLI scores of the intervention group were higher than those of the control group (P < 0.05), and the NIHSS score was correspondingly lower than that of the control group (P < 0.05). The incidence of respiratory infections, pressure sores, central hyperpyrexia, and deep venous thrombosis was lower in the intervention group than in the control group. Accordingly, the satisfaction rate was higher in the treatment group than that in the control group (P < 0.05).

Conclusion: Intensive intervention by doctors, nurses, and families of elderly patients with HICH reduced the rate of rebleeding during hospitalization. It also reduced the incidence of complications, promoted rehabilitation, improved the quality of life, and enhanced nerve function. Additionally, it improved satisfaction and promoted healthy behaviors.

Keywords: Hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage; Nerve function; Nurses and patient families; Rebleeding; Rehabilitation; Tripartite intensive intervention by doctors.