Risk factors and prognosis of early neurological deterioration in patients with posterior circulation cerebral infarction

Abstract

Background: The incidence, risk factors, and pathogenesis of early neurological deterioration (END) in posterior circulation stroke are still unclear. In this study, we aimed to determine the risk factors and prognosis of END in patients with acute posterior circulation cerebral infarction.Methods: Acute posterior circulation ischemic stroke patients who had completed neuroimaging within 72 hours of onset were selected from a prospective registry study. Demographic characteristics, physiological data, medical history, laboratory data, in-hospital evaluation, neurological severity and TOAST classi cation, treatment, and the modi ed Rankin Scale (mRS) score of patients were assessed. Early neurological deterioration was de ned as an increase of ≥2 points in the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score between the baseline and 72-hour evaluation. Favorable and poor outcomes were de ned as mRSs of 0-2 and ≥3, respectively, at 3 months. The incidence and risk factors were evaluated by univariate and multivariate regression analysis (step-back method).Results: The analysis included 455 subjects with an acute posterior circulation non-cardiac ischemic stroke, 330 (72.53%) of them male, with an average age of 63.12 (±10.14) years and with 47 (10.33%) having END. The results of univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that BATMAN