Disability for 15 Percent of Patients After Minor Stroke, TIA

Recurrent events have largest relative impact on outcome; 53 percent disabled after recurrent event

FRIDAY, Sept. 14 (HealthDay News) -- Approximately 15 percent of patients exhibit some disability 90 days after a minor stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA), and more than 50 percent of patients who have a recurrent event experience disability, according to a study published online Sept. 13 in Stroke.

Shelagh B. Coutts, M.D., of the University of Calgary in Canada, and colleagues conducted a study involving 499 consecutive patients who experienced a minor stroke or TIA and who had a computed tomography (CT)/CT angiography completed within 24 hours of symptom onset. The modified Rankin Scale was used to assess disability at 90 days and predictors of disability were evaluated.

The researchers found that 15 percent of patients had a disabled outcome. In multivariable analysis, significant predictors of disability included ongoing symptoms (odds ratio [OR], 2.4), diabetes mellitus (OR, 2.3), female gender (OR, 1.8), and CT/CT angiography-positive metric (OR, 2.4). Twelve percent of those who did not have a recurrent event were disabled (55 of 463), compared with 53 percent who experienced a recurrent event (19 of 36; risk ratio, 4.4).

"We found that a substantial proportion of patients with transient ischemic attack and minor stroke become disabled," the authors write. "In terms of absolute numbers, most patients have disability as a result of their presenting event; however, recurrent events have the largest relative impact on outcome."

The study was funded in part through research grants from Pfizer and AstraZeneca.

Abstract
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)

Copyright © 2012 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Powered by