Evaluation of individual and group changes in social outcome after aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage: a long-term follow-up study.

Sixty-three patients operated on for an acute aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage were evaluated comprehensively over 5 years. The level of social outcome was assessed by a Swedish eight-point version of the Glasgow Outcome Scale (S-GOS) at 0, 3, 6, 12, 24 and 60 months after discharge from a neurosurgical department. Stepwise comparisons of long-term changes in common to the group of patients were analysed separately from the level of individual changes of ordered categorical response variable of social outcome by a statistical method that takes account of the non-metric properties of the data. This study showed that the pattern of recovery was homogeneous, except for the first 3 months, where a considerably heterogeneous pattern of change was seen. A significant improvement in social outcome in common for the group was seen during the first 6 months and the recovery for the group did not continue beyond 1 year after discharge.