Renal Dysfunction Associated with Symptomatic Intracranial Hemorrhage after Intravenous Thrombolysis

Background and Aim: Renal dysfunction (RD) is prevalent in patients with acute ischemic stroke requiring intravenous thrombolysis. The relationship between renal function and thrombolysis related intracranial hemorrhagic (ICH) complications is contradictory according to previous studies. The current study is to clarify whether RD could increase the risk of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (SICH) after recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (IV rtPA) in acute ischemic stroke patients. Methods: In this observational study, acute ischemic stroke patients who received IV rtPA within 4.5 hours of symptom onset were retrospectively analyzed. Creatinine levels on admission served to calculate glomerular filtration rate (GFR) to estimate RD. SICH was defined with National Institute of Neurological Disorder and Stroke (NINDS, SICH_NINDS) or European Cooperative Acute Stroke Study II (ECASS II, SICH_ECASSII) criteria. Association of RD with SICH was assessed using continuous GFR or binary GFR (RD defined as GFR < 90 ml/minute/1.73 m²). Results: Of 312 patients included, the incidence of SICH_NINDS was 7.69%, of SICH_ECASSII was 5.45%. Patients with RD had higher prevalence of SICH_NINDS (12.80% versus 2.03%, P < .001) and SICH_{ECASS II} (9.15% versus 1.35%, P = .002)_. GFR as a continuous variable was associated with SICH_NINDS (OR_adjust = .97, P = .003), but not with SICH_{ECASS II}. GFR less than 90 ml/minute/1.73 m² remained independently associated with SICH_NINDS (OR_adjust = 4.79, P = .016), and SICH_{ECASS II} (OR_adjust = 2.99, P = .032) in multiple logistic regression analysis. Conclusions: Renal function is independently associated with SICH after IV rtPA thrombolysis. RD is an independent predictor for both SICH_NINDS and SICHE_{CASS II}. RD should be considered when evaluating the risk of intravenous thrombolysis with IV rtPA.     

Serum Retinoic Acid Level and The Risk of Poststroke Cognitive Impairment in Ischemic Stroke Patients

Background: Retinoic acid (RA), an active metabolite of vitamin A, possesses enormous protective effects on vascular systems. It may also be positively related to good functional outcome after ischemic stroke. However, whether circulating RA concentration is associated with poststroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) remains unclear. This study aimed to detect the association between RA level and PSCI among patients with first-ever acute ischemic stroke. Methods: Two hundred and 61 consecutive patients were prospectively recruited during March 2018 and March 2019. Serum RA concentration was measured at admission for all patients. We also performed cognitive function examination using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) at admission and at every follow-up visit. Patients with MoCA score less than 26 were identified as developing PSCI. Results: The median serum RA level was 2.0 ng/mL (interquartile range, 1.1-3.2 ng/mL) after admission. Patients diagnosed as PSCI at admission, 1-month and 3-month were 53 (20.3%), 91 (34.6%), and 141 (54.0%), respectively. Univariate analysis showed that reduced RA level was correlated with PSCI at 3-month (P = .003), but not at admission (P = .416) and 1-month poststroke (P = .117). After adjusting for all potential confounders, the odds ratio for the lowest tertile of RA, compared with the highest tertile, was 1.97 (95% confidence interval, 1.01-3.83, P = .046) for PSCI at 3 months. Furthermore, multiple-adjusted spline regression model further confirmed the dose-response relationships between RA level and 3-month PSCI (P < .001). Conclusions: Decreasing serum RA level might be associated with 3-month PSCI in ischemic stroke patients.     

Initial National Institute of Health Stroke Scale to Early Predict the Improvement of Swallowing in Patients with Acute Ischemic Stroke

Objectives: To study the applicability of National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) in early predicting the prognosis of poststroke dysphagia in an acute ward. Methods: This is an observational retrospective cohort study including adult patients with ischemic stroke. Patients with various factors affecting swallowing were excluded to obtain a representative sample of 165 patients. The main outcome measure was the improvements of oral intake function. Results: The scores of facial palsy (NIHSS item 4) (odds ratio [OR]: 0.484, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.279-0.838, P = .0096] and language/aphasia (NIHSS item 9) (OR: 0.562, 95% CI: 0.321-0.982, P = .0430) demonstrated significantly negative effects on the early improvement of dysphagia. Moreover, the improved patients had a 4.14-fold (95% CI: 2.53-11.23, P = .005) increased odds of returning home compared with nonimproved patients. Conclusions: Our findings provide evidence that early improvement of poststroke dysphagia was significantly associated with a favorable discharge destination and NIHSS items of facial palsy and language/aphasia can be used at the onset of stroke to identify dysphagic patients at risk of achieving limited improvement. These findings provide valuable prognostic indicators for clinicians to make a precise outcome prediction at very early stage.