Previous studies showed that C-reactive protein (CRP), an inflammatory marker, was associated with stroke severity and long-term outcome. However, the relationship between the acute-phase CRP level and discharge outcome has received little attention. We prospectively studied 301 patients with acute ischemic stroke (over a period of two weeks) from two hospital stroke wards and one rehabilitatio...

OBJECTIVE It is unknown whether racial differences in exposure to acute precipitants of stroke, specifically infection, contribute to racial disparities in stroke mortality. METHODS Among participants in the nationally representative Health and Retirement Study with linked Medicare data (1991-2007), we conducted a case-crossover study employing within-person comparisons to study racial/ethnic...

Patients and methods: This was a prospective study in which all admitted patients for acute ischemic stroke within 24 hours throughout the year 2006 were included. The severity of the stroke was based on the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS). The 2005 AHA/ASA guidelines in the management of acute ischemic stroke were followed. We also followed the same guidelines in the treatme...

To the Editor We greatly enjoyed reading the recently published article by Kim et al. (1). The authors found that the serum D-dimer levels were significantly associated with left atrial enlargement in anticoagulation-naïve patients with acute ischemic stroke and non-valvular atrial fibrillation. A number of studies have indicated the role of D-dimer in the stroke diagnosis, progression, and mor...

Transient ischemic attack (TIA) is associated with a high 90-day risk of stroke. Recently, tools for identifying and triaging high-risk patients, rapid medical management, and access to specialist care have led to improved outcomes. One such tool, the age, blood pressure, clinical features, duration of transient ischemic attack, diabetes mellitus (ABCD2) score, uses clinical data to stratify pa...

BACKGROUND Emerging studies suggest that early administration of dual antiplatelet therapy may be better than monotherapy for prevention of early recurrent stroke and cardiovascular outcomes in acute ischemic stroke and transient ischemic attack (TIA). We performed a meta-analysis of randomized, controlled trials evaluating dual versus mono antiplatelet therapy for acute noncardioembolic ischem...

Background: Thrombolytic therapy is the recommended treatment of acute ischemic stroke. It is crucial to evaluate the treatment results with recombinant Tissue Plasminogen Activator (r-TPA) in patients with acute stroke. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate treatment outcomes with r-TPA in patients with acute stroke in a referral stroke center in Iran. Materials & Methods: In this retrosp...

OBJECTIVE To assess the evidence for the use of diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and perfusion-weighted imaging (PWI) in the diagnosis of patients with acute ischemic stroke. METHODS We systematically analyzed the literature from 1966 to January 2008 to address the diagnostic and prognostic value of DWI and PWI. RESULTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS DWI is established as useful and should be consider...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Antiplatelets are recommended for patients with acute noncardioembolic stroke or transient ischemic attack. We compared the safety and efficacy of dual versus mono antiplatelet therapy in patients with acute ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack. METHODS Completed randomized controlled trials of dual versus mono antiplatelet therapy in patients with acute (≤3 day...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The decision to prescribe oral anticoagulant therapy in patients with atrial fibrillation is based on an assessment of the competing risks of ischemic stroke and major bleeding, of which intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is the most important type. We sought to determine the comparative importance of risk factors for ischemic stroke and ICH in patients with acute stroke and ...