Intraventricular Rt-PA in Patients With Intraventricular Hemorrhage

IVH occurs in about 40 percent of intracerebral hemorrhage cases and 15 percent of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage cases. Evidence supports a strong contribution of IVH to morbidity and mortality after cerebral hemorrhage. External ventricular drainage (EVD) is required clinical management; however, EVD via intraventricular catheter alone fails to prevent much of the morbidity and mortality of IVH. This study seeks to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of intraventricular thrombolysis, using rt-PA, as a method of removing this blood and altering morbidity and mortality. Patients will receive intraventricular injections of rt-PA or placebo every 12 hours. They will be followed prospectively with daily head CT scans during the acute-treatment phase and again between Days 28 and 32. Completion date provided represents the completion date of the grant per OOPD records