Quality of life after decompressive craniectomy

Background: Decompressive craniectomy (DC) is used to relieve refractory intracranial hypertension. It increases survival but associates high disability. This study aims to assess QoL in patients undergoing DC due to life-threatening intracranial hypertension. Methods: All patients over 18 years old who underwent a supratentorial DC at our department due to intracranial hypertension of any etiology, from January 2015 to December 2021, were retrospectively selected. Patients with incomplete follow-up (under one year from the event or those who died) or who declined to participate in the study were excluded. QoL was assessed with SF-36 and CAVIDACE scales. Correlation between clinical and therapeutic variables and SF-36 subscales was studied with Spearman’s correlation and the Mann-Whitney U tests.