Taking SSRIs does not appear to raise the risk of primary intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) but starting on the medicine after an intracranial haemorrhage may be associated with poorer stroke outcomes, researchers say.

They conducted a post-hoc analysis of data from the ERICH (Ethical/Racial Variations of IntraCerebral Haemorrhage) study in which 3000 US adults with primary ICH, from 42 hospitals, were matched with the same number of controls without a bleed.

To examine the effects of SSRIs, participants were classified into four groups: being on the medications in the two weeks before their stroke but not thereafter; being on them throughout; initiating SSRIs after the stroke; or not taking them at all.

Complete data on medications was available for 5182 people enrolled in the study, of whom 352 used an SSRI at some point over the three months of follow-up.