Inflammatory Proteins May Identify those at High-Risk of Stroke

Checking blood levels of certain inflammatory proteins could help doctors to determine patients at high risk of stroke, according to results of a recent study conducted in Sweden. Dr Gunnar Engstrom of Malmo University Hospital and his colleagues studied more than 6,000 healthy men aged 28 to 61. At the beginning of the 19-year-long study the men had their blood pressure tested and blood samples were taken to determine levels of five blood proteins linked to inflammation. As the authors expected, results showed that men with high blood pressure were most likely to suffer a stroke. However, they also showed that stroke risk was highest in men who had high blood pressure and high-levels of the inflammatory-sensitive proteins. In fact, men with high blood pressure but normal protein levels were 2.5-times more likely to have a stroke. While those with high blood pressure and high inflammatory protein levels were more than 4-times as likely to have a stroke than men with normal blood pressure and normal protein levels. Why the proteins should have such an effect upon stroke risk remains uncertain, although the authors suspect that the proteins may destabilize arterial plaques or make blood more susceptible to clotting.

SOURCE/REFERENCE: Stroke 2002;10.1161/01.STR.0000034787.02925.1F (Published online before print 31st October 2002)