Background: Anxiety is prevalent after a stroke. The pathophysiological mechanisms underlying the development of poststroke anxiety (PSA) remain unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical and neuroimaging risk factors for development of PSA and examine the effects of PSA on activities of daily living (ADL) and quality of life (QOL) in Chinese patients with ischemic stroke. Methods: Two hundred nineteen patients with acute ischemic stroke were recruited to the study. A series of comprehensive assessments, including Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HARS), Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS), Lawton ADL Scale, and the Stroke-Specific Quality of Life (SSQOL) Scale, were conducted in the acute stage and 3 months after stroke. Magnetic resonance imaging assessment focused on evaluation of infarctions, white matter lesions, and brain atrophy. Results: In the acute stage and 3 months after stroke, 34 (16%) and 33 (15%) patients had PSA, respectively. Multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that HDRS (OR = 1.269, 95% CI = 1.182–1.364, P < 0.001) and acute infarcts in cerebral hemispheric white matter (CHWM; OR = 2.902, 95% CI = 1.052–8.007, P = 0.040) were significant correlates of PSA in the acute stage of stroke. Three months after stroke, these correlates remained significant predictors, along with male sex. Multiple linear regressions showed that age, NIHSS, HARS, and HDRS in the acute stage were significant predictors for both ADL and SSQOL at 3 months after stroke. Conclusion: Depressive symptoms are the major correlates of PSA while more severe PSA is associated with poorer ADL and health-related QOL. Acute lesions involving CHWM may correlate with PSA in ischemic stroke patients with mild-to-moderate neurologic deficits, supporting a lesion-location hypothesis in PSA.

The aim of this prospective cohort study was to assess the incidence and risk factors of delirium following acute ischemic stroke, as well as its effects on functional outcome. Two hundred and sixty-one patients with acute ischemic stroke were screened for delirium during the first week after admission. Delirium was diagnosed according to the Confusion Assessment Method. If delirium was present, delirium rating scale-revised-98 was used to assess its severity. Neurologic deficits were assessed with the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS). Brain magnetic resonance imaging assessment quantified the infarction, white matter lesions, and medial temporal lobe atrophy. Functional outcome assessment included the modified Rankin Scale and Lawton Instrumental Activities of Daily Living scale at 3 and 6 months after the index stroke. Thirty-eight (14.6%) patients with acute ischemic stroke developed delirium during the first week of admission. Patients with poststroke delirium (PSD) were older, had higher NIHSS scores on admission, and were more likely to have a previous stroke, an infection, and a left cortical infarct. Furthermore, left cortical infarction, older age, severer neurological deficit and having a previous stroke increased the risk of PSD. PSD was associated with a worse functional outcome. The incidence of delirium was 14.8% in the first week after admission with acute ischemic stroke. Age, having a previous stroke, stroke severity, and left-cortical infarction were independently predictors of PSD. PSD may result in a significantly worse functional outcome.

Background. The relationship between the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and hemorrhagic transformation (HT) in acute ischemic stroke (AIS) treated with intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) remains unclear. This study assessed whether high NLR is associated with HT in this population. Methods. Data were prospectively collected for continuous patients with AIS treated with IVT and retrospectively analyzed. Clinical variables included age, sex, vascular risk factors, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score, onset-to-treatment time, and initial hematologic and neuroimaging findings. HT was confirmed by imaging performed within 3 days after IVT. Symptomatic HT (sHT) was defined as NIHSS score increased by 4 points compared with that on admission according to previously published criteria. The NLR value was based on the blood examination before IVT, and high NLR was defined as ≥75th percentile. Results. The study included 285 patients (201 (70.5%) males, the mean age was 62.3 years (range 29–89)). Seventy-two (25.3%) patients presented with HT, including three (1.1%) with sHT. The median NLR was 2.700 (1.820–4.255, interquartile range). Seventy-one (24.9%) patients had a high NLR (≥4.255) on admission. Univariate analysis indicated that patients with HT had higher NIHSS scores (P<0.001), systolic blood pressure (SBP), platelet counts, lymphocyte counts, and NLR (P<0.05), as well as a greater prevalence of high NLR than those without HT (37.5% vs. 20.7% and P=0.004). Patients with HT were more likely to have hypertension and AF. As lymphocyte counts and high NLR were highly correlated, we used two logistic regression models. In model 1 (with high NLR), NIHSS score on admission (odds ratio (OR) = 1.110, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.015–1.044, and P=0.001), AF (OR = 3.986, 95% CI = 2.095–7.585, and P<0.001), and high NLR (OR = 2.078, 95% CI = 1.078–4.003, P=0.029, sensitivity 0.375, and specificity 0.793) were significant predictors of HT. In model 2 (with lymphocyte counts), NIHSS score on admission (OR = 1.111, 95% CI = 1.050–1.175, and P<0.001), AF (OR = 3.853, 95% CI = 2.048–7.248, and P<0.001), and lymphocyte counts (OR = 0.522, 95% CI = 0.333–0.819, and P=0.005) were significantly associated with HT. Conclusions. High NLR could be a useful marker for predicting HT in AIS patients after IVT.

Introduction: Very few studies have investigated the specific relationship between neutrophil‐to‐lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and the short‐term outcomes of patients suffering from mild acute ischemic stroke (AIS) and receiving intravenous thrombolysis (IVT). This study aimed to investigate whether a high NLR is associated with a poor short‐term outcome in patients with mild AIS after IVT.Methods: We retrospectively analyzed data that were prospectively acquired from patients with AIS treated with IVT. Mild AIS was defined as a National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score ≤ 7 on admission. The NLR was based on a blood test performed prior to IVT and was classified as ‘high’ when exceeding the 75th percentile. Follow‐ups were performed at discharge and 3 months after onset. A poor outcome was defined as a modified Rankin scale (mRS) ≥3.Results: A total of 192 patients were included in this study. The median NLR was 3.0 (interquartile range [IQR]: 2.0–3.9). Fifty‐one patients (26.6%) had a high NLR (≥3.9) on admission. Forty‐one patients (21.4%) had a poor outcome at discharge, while 34 patients (17.7%) had a poor outcome at 3 months. Patients with a poor outcome at discharge, and at 3 months after onset, were more likely to have a high NLR at discharge (42.9% vs. 21.9%; p = .005) and at 3 months (44.1% vs. 22.8%; p = .011), compared with those with a better outcome. After adjustment for NIHSS score on admission, ipsilateral severe intracranial large artery occlusion, and atrial fibrillation, logistic regression analyses revealed that a high NLR was a significant predictor of poor outcome at discharge and at 3 months after onset.Conclusions: A high NLR on admission could be a useful marker for predicting poor short‐term outcome in patients with mild AIS following IVT.

Background: Susceptibility weighted imaging (SWI) provides an approximate assessment of tissue perfusion and shows prominent hypointense cortical veins in the ischemic territory because of the increased concentration of deoxyhemoglobin. We aimed to evaluate whether asymmetrical prominent cortical vein sign (APCVS) on SWI can predict early neurological deterioration (END) in acute ischemic stroke patients with severe intracranial arterial stenosis or occlusion (SIASO). Methods: One hundred and nine acute ischemic stroke patients with SIASO who underwent SWI were retrospectively recruited. END was defined as an increase in the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score ≧2 points despite standard treatment in the first 72 h after admission. The APCVS was defined as more and/or large vessels with greater signal loss than those in the opposite hemisphere on SWI. Results: Thirty out of the 109 (27.5%) patients developed END. Sixty (55.0%) patients presented with APCVS on SWI. APCVS occurred in 24 (80%) patients with END, whereas it only occurred in 36 (45.6%) patients without END (P = 0.001). Patients with APCVS were more likely to have END (40.0%, vs. 12.2%, P = 0.001) than those without END. Multivariate logistic regression indicated that APCVS (OR = 4.349, 95% C.I. = 1.580–11.970, P = 0.004) was a significant predictor of END in acute ischemic stroke patients with SIASO, adjusted for previous stroke history and acute infarct volume. Conclusions: In acute ischemic stroke patients with SIASO, the APCVS might be a useful neuroimaging marker for predicting END, which suggests the importance of evaluation of perfusion status.