Serum TG/HDL-C level at the acute phase of ischemic stroke is associated with post-stroke cognitive impairment.

Abstract

The ratio of triglycerides (TG) to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) bears a relation with poor outcomes of acute ischemic stroke (AIS), but the impact of serum TG/HDL-C level on post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) remains unknown. We conducted this prospective study to explore the association between TG/HDL-C and PSCI. Consecutive AIS patients from the Stroke Units of our hospital were prospectively enrolled between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021. Blood samples were collected within 24h after admission. Cognition function was evaluated by the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) at 3months after stroke. We used logistic regression analyses to explore the relationship between TG/HDL-C and PSCI, and then used a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis to assess the ability of acute TG/HDL-C for predicting PSCI. A total of 227 AIS patients were recruited. Compared with patients without PSCI, those with PSCI had a higher level of TG/HDL-C at admission (P < 0.01). The multivariate logistic regression analyses showed that TG/HDL-C level was independently associated with PSCI (P < 0.01). The area under the curve of the ROC for TG/HDL-C as predictor of PSCI was 0.701 (95%CI 0.635-0.768). The optimal cutoff value of TG/HDL-C to indicate PSCI was 1.564, which gave a sensitivity of 55.2% and specificity of 80.6%. Our study demonstrated that a higher level of TG/HDL-C at the acute phase of ischemic stroke predicted the presence of PSCI at 3months after stroke.