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Magnesium Sulfate Administration in Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

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Abstract

Magnesium offers theoretic vascular and neuroprotective benefits for patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage. An electronic literature search was conducted to identify original research studies describing intravenous magnesium treatment in patients with SAH published in English between January 1990 and October 2010. Seventeen articles were identified and reviewed, including one phase III randomized-controlled clinical trial and six phase II randomized-controlled trials. Study quality was low for most of the included studies, with the phase III trial considered to be of moderate quality. Due to inconsistently reported benefits and the occurrence of side effects, phase II data suggested that intravenous magnesium for SAH provided either no overall net benefit or uncertain trade-offs. Benefit was likewise not supported in the single phase III clinical trial.

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Correspondence to Jose I. Suarez.

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The Participants in the International Multidisciplinary Consensus Conference: Michael N. Diringer, Thomas P. Bleck, Nicolas Bruder, E. Sander Connolly, Jr., Giuseppe Citerio, Daryl Gress, Daniel Hanggi, J. Claude Hemphill, III, MAS, Brian Hoh, Giuseppe Lanzino, Peter Le Roux, David Menon, Alejandro Rabinstein, Erich Schmutzhard, Lori Shutter, Nino Stocchetti, Jose Suarez, Miriam Treggiari, MY Tseng, Mervyn Vergouwen, Paul Vespa, Stephan Wolf, Gregory J. Zipfel.

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Suarez, J.I., The Participants in the International Multidisciplinary Consensus Conference on the Critical Care Management of Subarachnoid Hemorrhage. Magnesium Sulfate Administration in Subarachnoid Hemorrhage. Neurocrit Care 15, 302–307 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12028-011-9603-y

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