Predicting a Second Stroke

Ivanhoe Newswire
Wednesday, December 13, 2006; 12:00 AM

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- A new study reveals silent brain lesions after a stroke may be a predictor for another stroke. These lesions can be seen on an MRI but are called "silent" because the patient has no symptoms.

Doctors from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke in Bethesda, Md., followed stroke patients and assessed predictors of recurrent stroke. The study included 120 patients who had an acute ischemic stroke between 2000 and 2002. Each patient underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) within 24 hours of the stroke, on the fifth day after, and most had another MRI 30 to 90 days later. In 2003, researchers followed up to see who had a second stroke.

Study authors report silent ischemic lesions were seen on the MRI in 42 of the patients. At the follow-up, about 8 percent of the patients had recurrent stroke, 3 percent had a mini-stroke, and 3 percent died from vascular causes during the follow up.

Patients found to have silent lesions during the 30 to 90 day MRI had about 6.5-times the odds of having a subsequent ischemic stroke, according to researchers. Patients with lesions found at any point after their stroke had an increased risk of death from reasons related to stroke.

Researchers report MRI after stroke may be able to point out which patients are more likely to have another stroke well before any symptoms arise.

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SOURCE: Archives of Neurology, 2006;63:1730-1733