Abstract W P149: High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein, but Not Lipoprotein-Associated Phospholipase A2, May Predict the Unfavorable Outcome After Acute Ischemic Stroke

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Inflammation plays an important role in atherosclerosis and its clinical sequelae. Their relationship to stroke is not settled. We assessed the hypothesis that relative elevations of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (Lp-PLA2) levels at the time of first stroke are associated with stroke severity and prognosis. Methods: First ischemic stroke patients who was admitted within 7days after stroke onset, were prospectively enrolled. High-sensitivity C-reactive protein and Lp-PLA2 level were assayed using the enzyme-linked immunoassay. Vascular risk factors, stroke subtypes, and initial stroke severity were assessed. Stroke severity was evaluated using the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) and was categorized as mild (NIHSS score<6), moderate (NIHSS score of 6-13), or severe (NIHSS score≥14). The unfavorable outcome was defined as the modified Rankin Scale of 2-6 at 3month after stroke onset. Results: Two hundred two patients (mean age, 67.5 years; 52.5% male) were included; 104 (51.5%) had unfavorable outcome. Levels of hs-CRP and Lp-PLA2 were weakly correlated (Spearman’s rho=0.174, p=0.01). In univariate analyses, female (p=0.03), patients with large artery atherosclerosis of stroke subtypes (p<0.01), severe NIHSS score (p=0.01), and unfavorable outcome (p<0.01) showed the higher mean value level of hs-CRP level than the others. Patients with hypertension (p=0.03), large artery atherosclerosis (p<0.01), severe NIHSS score (p<0.01), and unfavorable outcome (p=0.01) also had the higher mean value of Lp-PLA2 level than the others. After adjusting for age, sex, vascular risk factors, and initial stroke severity, the high level of hs-CRP was associated with unfavorable outcome (1.71±4.2 vs. 0.26±0.45, odds ratio (OR) 1.82, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.02-3.27, p=0.04). However, after adjusting for the confounders, Lp-PLA2 was not associated with unfavorable outcome (191.33±77.78 vs. 162.02±61.54, OR 1.00, 95% CI 0.99-1.01, p=0.66). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that the level of hs-CRP and Lp-PLA2 were associated with stroke severity, but only hs-CRP may be useful to predict functional outcome at 3 month after ischemic stroke.