Periventricular and Intraventricular Brain Hemorrhage

Intracranial hemorrhage should be described according to the anatomical location (ideally the site of origin and the extent) and the precipitating circumstance. The location and type of hemorrhage are determined at least in part by the stage of brain development. Periventricular hemorrhage (PVH) refers to bleeding adjacent to the lateral ventricles, usually but not solely in the germinal matrix. Other synonymous terms are ganglionic eminence hemorrhage, subependymal hemorrhage, and germinal matrix hemorrhage (1–4). Intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) is the accumulation of blood within the cerebral ventricles. This is usually secondary to PVH or from the choroid plexus.