Original Investigation

Long-Term Mortality, Cognition, and Quality of Life After Chronic Subdural Hematoma Surgery

JAMA Neurology 10.1001/jamaneurol.2026.0656

April 13, 2026 at 11:00 AM EDT

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What are the long-term survival and health-related quality of life outcomes in patients surgically treated for chronic subdural hematoma (cSDH)?In this 10-year follow-up cohort study of 359 patients, survival was 18 percentage points lower than in an age- and sex-matched general population (55.5% vs 73.5%), and survivors reported persistent cognitive and functional impairments despite overall preserved global quality of life.Patients with surgically treated cSDH experience sustained excess mortality and long-term self-reported cognitive and functional impairments, underscoring the need for comprehensive postoperative and rehabilitative care beyond the perioperative episode.

Corresponding Author: Johannes Goldberg, MD, FEBNS, Department of Neurosurgery, Inselspital Bern, RosenbĂĽhlgasse 25, 3010 Bern, Switzerland (johannes.goldberg@insel.ch).

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