Evaluation of FRESH scores in predicting outcome and quality of life after aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage in a European patient cohort

Background Despite aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage (aSAH) patients often experiencing physical and mental disabilities impacting their quality of life (QoL), routine assessment of long-term QoL data and predictive tools are limited. This study evaluates the newly developed “functional recovery expected after subarachnoid haemorrhage” (FRESH) scores with long-term outcomes and QoL in European aSAH patients. Methods FRESH, FRESH-cog, and FRESH-quol scores were retrospectively obtained from aSAH patients. Patients were contacted, and the modified Rankin Scale (mRS), extended short form-36 (SF-36), and telephone interview for cognitive status (TICS) were collected and performed. The prognostic and empirical outcomes were compared. Results Out of 374 patients, 171 patients (54.1%) completed the SF-36, and 154 patients completed the TICS. The SF-36 analysis showed that 32.7% had below-average physical component summary (PCS) scores, and 39.8% had below-average mental component summary (MCS) scores. There was no significant correlation between the FRESH score and PCS ( p = 0.09736), MCS ( p = 0.1796), TICS ( p = 0.7484), or mRS 10–82 months (average 46 months) post bleeding ( p = 0.024), respectively. There was also no significant correlation found for “FRESH-cog vs. TICS” ( p = 0.0311), “FRESH-quol vs. PCS” ( p = 0.0204), “FRESH-quol vs. MCS” ( p = 0.1361) and “FRESH-quol vs. TICS” ( p = 0.1608). Conclusions This study found no correlation between FRESH scores and validated QoL tools in a European population of aSAH patients. The study highlights the complexity of reliable long-term QoL prognostication in aSAH patients and emphasises the need for further prospective research to also focus on QoL as an important outcome parameter.