Outcome of Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Not Altered With Transatlantic Airplane Transfer: A Bicentric Matched Case-control Study

Abstract

Objective: It is recommended that ruptured cerebral aneurysms are treated in a high-volume center within 72 hours of ictus. We assessed the impact of long-distance aeromedical evacuation in patients presenting aSAH. Methods: This case-control study compared patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) who had a 6750 km air transfer from Guadeloupe (a Caribbean island) to Paris, France, for neurointerventional management in a tertiary center with a matched cohort from Paris region treated in the same center over a 10-year period (2010 to 2019). The 2 populations were matched on age, sex, World Federation of Neurological Surgeons score, and Fisher score. The primary outcome was a 1-year modified Rankin Scale score ≤3. Secondary outcomes included time from diagnosis to securing aneurysm, 1-year mortality, and a cost analysis. Results: Among 128 consecutive aSAH transferred from Guadeloupe, 93 were matched with 93 patients from the Paris area. The proportion of patients with 1-year modified Rankin Scale ≤3 (75% vs 82%, respectively; P= 0.5) and 1-year mortality (18% vs 14%, respectively; P= 0.2) was similar in the Guadeloupe and Paris groups. The median (interquartile range: Q1, Q3) time from diagnosis to securing the aneurysm was higher in the patients from Guadeloupe than those from Paris (48 [30, 63] h vs 23 [12, 24] h, respectively; P< 0.001). Guadeloupean patients received mechanical ventilation (58% vs 38%; P< 0.001) and external ventricular drainage (55% vs 39%; P= 0.005) more often than those from Paris. The additional cost of treating a Guadeloupe patient in Paris was estimated at 7580 Euros or 17% of the estimated cost in Guadeloupe. Conclusions: Long-distance aeromedical evacuation of patients with aSAH from Guadeloupe to Paris resulted in a 25-hour increase in time to aneurysm coiling embolization time but did not impact 1-year functional outcomes or mortality.