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(Stroke. 2004;35:e151.)
© 2004 American Heart Association, Inc.

Research Reports

Lower Serum Triglyceride Level Is Associated With Increased Stroke Severity

Tomasz Dziedzic, MD; Agnieszka Slowik, MD; Elzbieta A. Gryz, MD Andrzej Szczudlik, MD, PhD

From the Department of Neurology, Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland.

Correspondence to Dr Tomasz Dziedzic, Department of Neurology, Jagiellonian University, Botaniczna 3, 31-503 Krakow, Poland. E-mail Dziedzic{at}neuro.cm-uj.krakow.pl or dziedzictom{at}mediclub.pl

Background and Purpose— A previous study showed that low triglyceride concentration predicts higher mortality after stroke. The aim of our study was to determine whether serum triglyceride level is associated with stroke severity on admission.

Methods— 863 consecutive patients with acute ischemic stroke were included. Serum triglyceride level was measured within 36 hours after stroke onset. Stroke severity on admission was assessed using Scandinavian Stroke Scale (SSS). The patients were divided into 2 groups: those with severe stroke (SSS 25) and those with mild/moderate stroke (SSS >25).

Results— Patients with severe stroke had significantly lower serum triglyceride level than patients with mild/moderate stroke (1.4±0.6 versus 1.7±1.3 mmol/L). After adjusting for age, sex, atrial fibrillation, diabetes mellitus, obesity, and ischemic heart disease, patients with triglyceride >2.3 mmol/L had lower risk of severe stroke than those with triglyceride 2.3 mmol/L (OR: 0.58; 95% CI: 0.35 to 0.95).

Conclusions— Our results suggest that lower level of triglyceride is associated with the more severe stroke.

Key Words: stroke • cholesterol