title: Silent brain infarcts, leukoaraiosis, and long-term prognosis in young ischemic stroke patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate prognostic relevance of silent brain infarcts (SBIs) and leukoaraiosis (LA) in young patients with ischemic stroke.
  
  
  METHODS
  This observational cohort study included consecutive MRI-scanned patients aged 15 to 49 with first-ever ischemic stroke treated at Helsinki University Central Hospital (1994-2007) with long-term follow-up data available. Outcome measures were 1) nonfatal or fatal ischemic stroke, 2) composite vascular endpoint, and 3) death from any cause. Trial of ORG 10172 in Acute Stroke Treatment (TOAST) and Bamford criteria allowed for stroke subtyping. Number of SBIs was categorized into none, single, or multiple. LA fell into groups of none, mild, or moderate to severe (validated visual rating scale).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The 655 patients (mean age 40.0 ± 8.0 years) included were followed for a mean 8.7 ± 3.8 years (survivors). Of the 86 (13.1%) patients with SBIs, 46 had single and 40 had multiple SBIs. In the 50 (7.6%) patients with LA, these changes were mild in 21 and moderate to severe in 29. In Cox regression analysis, multiple SBIs independently raised the risk for recurrent ischemic stroke (odds ratio 2.48; 95% confidence interval 1.24-4.94) adjusted for age, gender, risk factors, stroke etiology, and LA. After further adjustment for initial stroke severity, TOAST and Bamford subgroups, and presence of SBIs, moderate to severe LA increased the risk for death (3.43; 1.58-7.42). Neither SBIs nor LA associated with the composite vascular endpoint.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  MRI-defined SBIs and LA are prognostically valuable in young adults after their first-ever ischemic stroke.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Helsinki University Central Hospital, Haartmaninkatu 4, FIN-00290, Helsinki, Finland. jukka.putaala@hus.fi
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Putaala
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Haapaniemi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kurkinen
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Salonen
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kaste
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tatlisumak
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D020520:Brain Infarction / Q000145:classification / Q000473:pathology*; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D023381:Endpoint Determination; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D049292:Leukoaraiosis / Q000145:classification / Q000473:pathology*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012008:Recurrence; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D020521:Stroke / Q000209:etiology / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology*; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome