ObjectiveTo systematically review the correlation between atrial fibrillation and prognosis of patients with ischemic stroke after intravenous thrombolysis. MethodsLiterature search was carried out in PubMed, EMbase, Web of Science, The Cochrane Library (Issue 4, 2014), CBM and WanFang Data up to April 2014 for the domestic and foreign cohort studies on atrial fibrillation and prognosis of patients with ischemic stroke after intravenous thrombolysis. Two reviewers independently screened literature according to inclusion and exclusion criteria, extracted data, and assessed methodological quality of included studies. Then meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.2. ResultsA total of 7 cohort studies were finally included involving 69 017 cases. The results of meta-analysis showed that, compared with patients without atrial fibrillation, atrial fibrillation reduced 3-month favourable nerve function of patients with atrial fibrillation (OR=0.85, 95%CI 0.73 to 0.98, P=0.03) but did not influence the risk of death after intravenous thrombolysis (OR=1.47, 95%CI 0.75 to 2.86, P=0.26); and increased the risks of intracranial haemorrhagic transformation (OR=1.36, 95%CI 1.26 to 1.47, P < 0.001) and symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage after intravenous thrombolysis (OR=1.43, 95%CI 1.02 to 1.99, P=0.04). ConclusionFor patients with ischemic stroke, atrial fibrillation does not influence the risk of death, but it increases the risks of intracranial hemorrhage, and worsens 3-month favourable nerve function of after intravenous thrombolysis. For those patients, more assessment before intravenous thrombolysis and more monitoring after intravenous thrombolysis are necessary. Due to limited quality and quantity of the included studies, the abovementioned conclusion still needs to be verified by conducting more high quality studies.
Objective To explore the awareness of thrombolytic therapy for acute ischemic stroke in inpatients with a history of stroke and with a high risk of stroke. Methods From January to August 2012, using self-designed questionnaire, trained neurologists conducted the face to face investigation in 500 inpatients with a high risk of stroke, including those with a history of stroke in Department of Neurology in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University. Results A total of 467 valid questionnaires were recovered. Only 16.1% (75/467) patients were aware of thrombolytic therapy for acute stroke, of whom 50.7% (38/75) knew the time window of thrombolytic therapy. Awareness of thrombolytic therapy was higher in patients aged 56-70 years, with a higher level of education and income, and in those who knew at least 3 stroke warning signs and those with a history of stroke. While awareness of the time window of thrombolytic therapy was higher in those unmarried or widowed and with a history of stroke. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that awareness of thrombolytic therapy was independently associated with age, education level, knowledge of stroke warning signs and a history of stroke; awareness of the time window was associated with marital status and a history of stroke (P<0.05). Conclusions Inpatients with a history of stroke and with a high risk of stroke in the Department of Neurology have poor awareness of thrombolytic therapy for acute ischemic stroke. It is necessary to improve the level of patients’ knowledge about thrombolytic therapy for acute stroke by health education.
Objective To evaluate the risk factors for cognitive impairment and their interactions in acute ischemic stroke (IS) patients. Methods IS patients admitted to the Department of Neurology, the People’s Hospital of Mianyang between January 2019 and January 2022 were selected. Patients were divided into a cognitive impairment group and a cognitive normal group. The demographic characteristics and clinical data of the subjects were collected, and the traditional risk factors for cognitive impairment were determined by univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis. The multifactor dimensionality reduction test was used to detect the possible interactions between risk factors. Results A total of 255 patients were included. Among them, 88 cases (34.5%) in the cognitive impairment group and 167 cases (65.5%) in the cognitive normal group. The results of factor logistic regression analysis showed that after adjusting for covariates, big and medium infarction volume, severe IS, moderate to severe carotid artery stenosis as well as high hypersensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) were associated with post-IS cognitive impairment (P<0.05). The cognitive impairment increased by 22.632 times [odds ratio=22.632, 95% confidence interval (5.980, 85.652), P<0.001] in patients with big and medium infarction volume, severe IS and high hs-CRP. Conclusions The cognitive impairment is common in acute IS. Patients with big and medium infarction volume, non-mild stroke, carotid artery stenosis, high hs-CRP, and non-right sided infarction are prone to cognitive impairment, and there are complex interactions among these risk factors.
Objective To explore the risk factors of carotid artery atherosclerotic plaque in ischemic stroke patients. Methods One hundred and forty-eight patients with ischemic stoke were allocated into two groups by ultrasonographic testing (80 with plaque and 68 without plaque). The carotid artery acoustic densitometry (IMT), blood pressure, blood glucose , blood lipid, fibriongen (FIB), c-reactive protein (CRP) were tested. First, single variable analysis was conducted and then multivariate non-condition stepwise logistic model analysis was conducted. Results Carotid IMT, age , total cholesterol (TC), low density lipoprotein (LDL)-CH, FIB, CRP level and the incidence of hypertension and diabetes were significantly higher in ischemic stroke patients with carotid artery plaques than patients without plaques (P≤0.05); Multiple logistic regression analysis showed the most important risk factors of plaques were CRP (OR=3.546, P=0.035) and FIB (OR=1.074, P=0.012) level. Conclusion The main risk factors of carotid atherosclerosis plaque are almost the same as atherosclerosis, such as age , hypertension ,diabetes, hyperlipidemia , high FIB and CRP level and increase in carotid IMT. CRP and FIB may play a crucial role in the development of carotid artery atherosclerosis plaque.
ObjectiveTo systematically evaluate the association between MTHFR gene C677T polymorphism and susceptibility to young and middle-aged adult ischemic stroke among Chinese population. MethodsSuch databases as PubMed, EMbase, The Cochrane Library (Issue 11, 2013), CBM, CNKI, VIP and WanFang Data were systemically searched to collect case-control studies published from Jan 1990 to Dec 2013. RevMan 5.2 was used to quantitatively analyzed the qualified and included studies, the pooled odds ratio (ORs) with 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated; Stata 12.0 software were used for sensitivity and publication bias analysis. ResultsA total of 10 studies were included, which involved 787 cases and 766 controls. The results of meta-analysis showed that, in overall young and middle-aged adult group (aged less than 60), individuals that carried T allele risked more with ischemic stroke than those carried C allele (OR=1.42, 95%CI 1.07 to 1.89, P=0.02); more susceptibility to ischemic stroke was found among people of TT genotype compared with those of CC genotype (OR=2.11, 95%CI 1.58 to 2.81, P=0.00), as well as those of TT+TC genotype compared with CC genotype (OR=1.97, 95%CI 1.55 to 2.51, P=0.00), and those of TT genotype compared with TC+CC genotype (OR=1.42, 95%CI 1.13 to 1.77, P=0.00). Increased risk was also observed in TT+TC genotype compared with CC genotype in young adult subgroup (aged less than 45) (OR=1.66, 95%CI 1.19 to 2.32, P=0.00). ConclusionMTHFR gene C677T polymorphism is significantly associated with susceptibility to young and middle-aged adult ischemic stroke among Chinese population, and more risk may exist in middle-aged adult population.
ObjectiveTo explore the association of elongase of very long chain fatty acids family member 6 (ELOVL6) gene with increased risk of large-artery atherosclerosis stroke (LAA) in Han Chinese population in Chengdu.MethodsHan Chinese populations in Chengdu, Sichuan were chosen for this study using the case-control design between January 2015 and December 2017. The genotypes and haplotypes of six single nucleotides polymorphisms (SNPs) of ELOVL6 gene (rs3813825, rs17041272, rs4141123, rs9997926, rs6824447, and rs12504538) were analyzed in different genetic models in entire samples, and gene-enviromental interaction analyses were also carried out to get an insight of the risk factors for LAA. At the same time, we also analyzed the gene expression profile in peripheral blood mononuclear cells between groups.ResultsA total of 240 LAA cases and 211 healthy controls were enrolled in this study. All the enrolled subjects presented CC genotype of rs9997926, while the other five SNPs (rs3813825, rs17041272, rs4141123, rs6824447, and rs12504538) were genotyped successfully in all the enrolled subjects. rs17041272 polymorphism and TGTTG haplotype were significantly associated with LAA risk in studied population [CC/(CG+GG): odds ratio (OR)=0.640, 95% confidence interval (CI) (0.423, 0.968), P=0.034; TGTTG: OR=1.776, 95%CI (1.069, 2.951), P=0.024], and the interaction among rs17041272, rs6824447 SNPs and dyslipidemia increased susceptibility to LAA [OR=2.737, 95%CI (1.715, 4.368), P<0.001]. The ELOVL6 gene expression level was higher in LAA subjects (t=?3.167, P=0.003).ConclusionsELOVL6 gene is associated with LAA risk in Han nationality of Chinese population in Chengdu, and the interaction of gene-environmental risk factors could be of great importance in pathophysiology of LAA.
ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to investigate clinical aspects as risk factors for seizure recurrence in patients with post-stroke epilepsy. MethodsDuring January 2010 to April 2016, patients admitted into Department of Neurology, West China Hospital were retrospectively selected. Inpatients diagnosed as epilepsy following stoke and attending our follow-up were participated in this study. Logistic regression model was used to analyze the risk factors of seizure recurrence. ResultsWe included 105 patients with diagnosis of post-stroke epilepsy, among them, 59.0% were male and the median age was 72 years. Median time from stroke onset to seizure attack was 180 days. Approximately 80% patients received antiepileptic drugs(AEDs). During 720 days follow-up period, 70% patients reported without seizure attack. Risk factors significantly associated with seizure recurrence were younger age [OR=3.03, 95 % CI(1.19, 7.76), P=0.02], poor modified Rankin Scale score [OR=3.01, 95 % CI(1.1, 8.18), P=0.03] and using more than two kinds of AEDs [OR=3.85, 95 % CI(1.3, 11.18), P=0.01]. ConclusionsIn the clinical course of post-stroke epilepsy, clinicians should realize the management for primary disease to alleviate stroke sequel and select rational AEDs to reduce seizure recurrence.
Ischemic stroke (IS) is one of the important diseases threatening human health. The occurrence and development of IS can trigger a series of complex pathophysiological changes, including damage to the blood-brain barrier, ion imbalance, oxidative stress, mitochondrial damage, which ultimately lead to the apoptosis and necrosis of nerve cells in the ischemic area. Impaired blood-brain barrier is a key factor for cerebral edema, hemorrhagic transformation and poor prognosis in patients with IS, and neuroinflammatory response plays an important role in the damage and repair of the blood-brain barrier. This article mainly focuses on the neuroinflammatory response mediated by glial cells, pro-inflammatory cytokines and matrix metalloproteinases and the related mechanisms of IS blood-brain barrier damage and repair, in order to provide new directions for the treatment of IS.
ObjectiveTo investigate the relationship between the level of homocysteine (HCY) and the overall burden of cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) in patients with ischemic stroke.MethodsA total of 322 patients with first-ever ischemic stroke admitted to the People’s Hospital of Deyang City between January 2016 and December 2017 were enrolled. The patients’ demographic information, clinical information, and serum HCY concentration were collected after admission. The presence or absence of a CSVD was assessed by MRI and the overall burden score for the CSVD was determined. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to assess whether serum HCY level was associated with the overall burden of CSVD.ResultsThe median level of HCY was 13.2 μmol/L (inter-quartile range: 4.3 to 22.6 μmol/L). Univariate analysis showed that the difference of HCY levels among patients with different total CSVD scores was statistically significant (F=6.874, P=0.001); Spearman correlation analyses showed that the HCY level grouped by quartiles was correlated to the number of lacunar infarctions (rs=0.267, P=0.001), Fazekas score of white matter lesions (rs=0.122, P=0.042), and enlarged perivascular space (EPV) score (rs=0.319, P=0.001), but was not correlated to cerebral microhemorrhage (rs=?0.010, P=0.869). After multivariate regression analysis to adjust the effects of other factors, compared with the patients with HCY levels in the lowest quartile group, the patients with HCY levels in the highest quartile group were more likely to develop lacunar infarction [odds ratio (OR)=1.892, 95% confidence interval (CI) (1.012, 2.987)], white matter lesions [OR=1.548, 95%CI (1.018, 1.654)], severe EPV [OR=6.347, 95%CI (3.592, 13.978)], and the increase in the CSVD score [OR=2.981, 95%CI (1.974, 5.398)].ConclusionIn patients with ischemic stroke, elevated HCY levels may be associated with the overall burden of the CSVD.
Objective To investigate the relationship between age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity index (aCCI) and ischemic stroke in patients with ophthalmic artery occlusion (OAO) or retinal artery occlusion (RAO). MethodsA single center retrospective cohort study. Seventy-four patients with OAO or RAO diagnosed by ophthalmology examination in Shenzhen Second People's Hospital from June 2004 to December 2020 were included in the study. The baseline information of patients were collected and aCCI was used to score the patients’ comorbidity. The outcome was ischemic stroke. The median duration of follow-up was 1 796.5 days. According to the maximum likelihood ratio of the two-piecewise COX regression model and the recursive algorithm, the aCCI inflection point value was determined to be 6, and the patients were divided into low aCCI group (＜6 points) and high aCCI group (≥6 points). A Cox regression model was used to quantify the association between baseline aCCI and ischemic stroke. ResultsAmong the 74 patients, 53 were males and 21 were females, with the mean age of (55.22±14.18) (19-84) years. There were 9 patients of OAO and 65 patients of RAO. The aCCI value ranges from 1 to 10 points, with a median of 3 points. There were 63 patients (85.14%, 63/74) in the low aCCI group and 11 patients (14.86%, 11/74) in the high aCCI group. Since 2 patients could not determine the time from baseline to the occurrence of outcome events, 72 patients were included for Cox regression analysis. The results showed that 16 patients (22.22%, 16/72) had ischemic stroke in the future. The baseline aCCI in the low aCCI group was significantly associated with ischemic stroke [hazard ratio (HR)=1.76, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.21-2.56, P=0.003], and for every 1 point increase in baseline aCCI, the risk of future ischemic stroke increased by 76% on average. The baseline aCCI in the high aCCI group had no significant correlation with the ischemic stroke (HR=0.66, 95%CI 0.33-1.33, P=0.247). ConclusionsaCCI score is an important prognostic information for patients with OAO or RAO. A higher baseline aCCI score predicts a higher risk of ischemic stroke, and the association has a saturation effect.