New research has shown that two common markers of inflammation can help to predict people who are at risk of ischemic stroke.
Dr Vijay Nambi, a cardiologist at the Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center and Baylor College of Medicine, and colleagues found that adding the inflammatory biomarkers lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (Lp-PLA2) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (CRP) to the traditional risk assessment tools for stroke risk helped to improve the accuracy of stroke prediction.
Study results showed that 39% of study participants classed as having an intermediate-risk of stroke had to be reclassified into higher or lower risk groups after the researchers took Lp-PLA2 and CRP into account. As the researchers expected, very few (just 4%) of low-risk participants were reclassified after taking the biomarkers into account, and none were reclassified as high-risk.
“If we can identify increased risk for stroke, we can recommend exercise, smoking cessation, and cholesterol and blood pressure medication to reduce a person’s risk for stroke by more than 30 percent,” said Dr. Nambi, in a news release. “Adding these two biomarkers to traditional risk assessment tools improves our ability to do that.”
Nambi V, Hoogeveen RC, Chambless L, et al. Lipoprotein-Associated Phospholipase A2 and High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein Improve the Stratification of Ischemic Stroke Risk in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study. Stroke 2008. doi:10.1161/STROKEAHA.107.513259
News release: Two Biomarkers Improve Prediction of Stroke Risk. Methodist Hospital, Houston. December 18th 2008.