title: Cerebellar hemorrhage after supratentorial craniotomy.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Cerebellar hemorrhage following supratentorial craniotomy is a very seldom described but serious complication. The present study evaluates the significance of presurgical and surgical factors that may predispose patients to these bleeding episodes.
  
  
  METHODS
  The data of 52 cases of cerebellar hemorrhage following supratentorial craniotomy, 9 from our records and 43 from the literature, were analyzed with regard to various variables.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The findings suggest that this clinical picture is unrelated to age, previous arterial hypertension, inherent or induced coagulopathies, type of primary underlying lesion, intraoperative positioning of the patient, type of anesthesia, or intracranial hypotension and its sequels. It entails significant morbidity, with one third of the patients left with cerebellar dysfunction or in a dependent state, and carries a mortality of about 25%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Not one single presurgical or surgical factor can reliably predict the occurrence of cerebellar hemorrhage after supratentorial craniotomy, and the etiology of this entity still remains unclear. The most important keys to minimize the hazardous sequelae are to be aware of this potential complication and to diagnose it early.
authors.affiliation: Neurosurgical Clinic, Johann Wolfgang Goethe-University, Schleusenweg 2-16, 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
authors.forename: Gerhard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Marquardt
authors.forename: Matthias
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Setzer
authors.forename: Uta
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Schick
authors.forename: Volker
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Seifert
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002526:Cerebellar Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology*; D002543:Cerebral Hemorrhage / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology*; D002648:Child; D003399:Craniotomy; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005260:Female; D005910:Glioma / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019106:Postoperative Hemorrhage / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D015173:Supratentorial Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000601:surgery*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed