Abstract
Neurological progression in acute ischemic stroke is associated with an increased risk of a poor outcome. We evaluated the role of platelet activation, coagulation system marker and clinical background in acute small vessel infarction. Sixty-one patients with non-cardioembolic small vessel infarction, admitted within 3 days after onset, were evaluated. The progressive group was defined by a more than 2 points increase on the NIH Stroke Scale score within 2 days after admission. Clinical, radiological, and biochemical parameters including platelet activation and coagulation system marker were compared between the progressive (n=16) and non-progressive (n=45) groups. Patients with hyperlipidemia and a lesion size of over 15 mm were significantly associated with the progressive group. The value for D-dimer was significantly higher in the progressive group, and was considered as a significant predictor of early neurological progression by logistic regression analysis. These findings suggest that the coagulation system may play an important role in early neurological progression of acute small vessel infarction.
