Pulmonary edema following fatal aneurysm rupture.

A retrospective clinico-pathological analysis of 78 cases of fatal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) was carried out: 71% had a pathological diagnosis of pulmonary edema (PE), and of these 31% had a clinical diagnosis of PE. Patients with pathological PE were younger and died sooner after their SAH than those without. The incidence of PE fell with the passage of time following SAH, while the occurrence of pneumonia and embolism increased. There were hypoxemia and hypocapnia in both groups, more severe in the group that had pathological PE. The pathophysiology of neurogenic PE is discussed and possible therapeutic approaches indicated.