Elevated body temperature in ischemic stroke associated with neurological improvement.

Abstract

Some studies suggest that high body temperature within the first few hours of ischemic stroke onset is associated with improved outcome. We hypothesized an association between high body temperature on admission and detectable improvement within 6-9hours of stroke onset. Consecutive ischemic stroke patients with NIHSS scores obtained within 3hours and in the interval 6-9hours after stroke onset were included. Body temperature was measured on admission. A total of 315 patients with ischemic stroke were included. Median NIHSS score on admission was 6. Linear regression showed that NIHSS score 6-9hours after stroke onset was inversely associated with body temperature on admission after adjusting for confounders including NIHSS score <3hours after stroke onset (P<.001). The same result was found in patients with proximal middle cerebral occlusion on admission. We found an inverse association between admission body temperature and neurological improvement within few hours after admission. This finding may be limited to patients with documented proximal middle cerebral artery occlusion on admission and suggests a beneficial effect of higher body temperature on clot lysis within the first three hours.