Risk Factors and Clinical Outcome of Ischemic Stroke in the Very Elderly
Kwangsoo Kim, MD
Department of Neurology, Kosin University College of Medicine, Busan, Korea
ABSTRACT
Background: Age is an important risk factor for ischemic stroke, and also correlates inversely with clinical outcome. The aim of this study was to examine stroke risk factors, and clinical severity and disability of ischemic stroke in patients aged 80 years or older. Methods: The records of patients with ischemic stroke from January 2000 to December 2010 were retrospectively reviewed. Demographic data, stroke risk factors, clinical presentation and outcome were collected and compared between very old patients aged ≥80 years and patients aged <80 years. Stroke severity and clinical disability were evaluated by means of the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) and modified Rankin Scale (mRS) respectively. Results: Of 447 cases of ischemic stroke, 53 (11.9%) patients were 80 years or older. Compared with patients <80 years, patients aged ≥80 years had a significantly higher proportion of hyperhomocysteinemia and a lower proportion of male sex, smoking and drinking. NIHSS scores on admission were significantly higher in patients aged ≥80 years, and mRS scores at discharge were not different between the 2 groups. Conclusions: Very old patients with ischemic stroke showed different stroke risk factors, and a higher stroke severity compared with stroke patient who were younger than 80 years of age.
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