Reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome (RCVS) versus other acute angiographically defined central nervous system vasculopathies. Data are mean (range) or proportions.
| Variable | RCVS | Control | p |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. cases | 13 | 11 | |
| Female (%) | 12/13 (92) | 8/11 (72) | 0.30 |
| Age, yrs (range) | 52.9 (21–71) | 48.6 (26–60) | 0.19 |
| Disease course, days | |||
| Time to admission | 3.7 (0–13) | 3.3 (0–17) | 0.42 |
| Time to angiography | 9.4 (2–26) | 10 (1–25) | 1 |
| Length of stay | 15 (4–31) | 20 (7–38) | 0.42 |
| Clinical findings (%) | |||
| Headaches | |||
| Overall | 13/13 (100) | 8/11 (73) | 0.08 |
| Thunderclap headache | 10/13 (77) | 2/11 (18) | 0.01 |
| Acute | 2/13 (15) | 4/11 (36) | |
| Other | 1/13 (8) | 2/11 (18) | |
| Focal deficit | 7/13 (54) | 11/11 (100) | 0.02 |
| Focal deficit > 24 h | 5/7 (71) | 10/11 (91) | 0.53 |
| Fever | 0/13 (0) | 3/11 (27) | 0.08 |
| Emesis | 5/13 (38) | 5/11 (45) | 1 |
| Altered vigilance | 2/13 (15) | 6/11 (55) | 0.08 |
| Rankin score | 0.04 | ||
| 1–2 | 10/13 (77) | 3/11 (27) | |
| 3–5 | 3/13 (23) | 8/11 (73) | |
| Laboratory findings | |||
| Mean CSF white blood cells /mm3 (range) | 4 (0–45) | 274 (1–1800) | 0.19 |
| CSF WBC > 10/mm3 (%) | 1/10 (10) | 3/9 (33) | 0.30 |
| Mean CSF protein, g/l (range) | 0.51 (0.3–1) | 1.07 (0.2–4) | 0.59 |
| CSF protein > 0.5 g/l (%) | 4/10 (40) | 5/9 (55) | 0.66 |
| Brain MRI (%) | |||
| Abnormal | 10/13 (77) | 11/11 (100) | 0.22 |
| cSAH | 8/13 (61) | 0/11 (0) | 0.006 |
| Stroke | 4/13 (31) | 11/11 (100) | 0.0006 |
| Infarct | 1/13 (8) | 7/11 (64) | 0.02 |
| Hematoma | 3/13 (33) | 4/11 (36) | 0.66 |
| Conventional angiogram | |||
| No. lesions (range) | 12 (3–28) | 10 (4–28) | 0.57 |
| No. territories (range) | 5 (2–7) | 5 (2–7) | 0.97 |
| String of beads appearance, % | 59 (11–100) | 27 (0–83) | 0.01 |
| Vascular followup imaging | 0.005 | ||
| Unchanged/worsened | 0 (0) | 5 (45) | |
| Improved | 9 (70) | 2 (18) | |
| Undetermined | 4 (30) | 5 (36) |
cSAH: cortical subarachnoid hemorrhage; CSF: cerebrospinal fluid; WBC: white blood cells; MRI: magnetic resonance imaging.