Risk Factors and Functional Outcome of Ischemic Stroke Vis-à-vis Hemorrhagic Stroke at a Tertiary Care Hospital in North India

Worldwide, stroke is the most common cause of death after coronary artery disease (CAD). The risk factor stratification and prognostication of stroke patients are vital in planning and allocating health-care resources. We conducted a prospective, comparative observational study. Fifty age- and sex-matched cases each of ischemic stroke (IS) and intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) stroke were enrolled, and baseline demographic, risk factor profile, Glasgow Coma Scale, modified Rankin scale (mRS), and Barthel Index (BI) were recorded, and the cases were followed up for 90 days or till death. We looked at the risk factors associated with IS and ICH and functional outcome of IS vis-à-vis ICH using mRS and BI at 90 days postenrollment. We also compared the mortality of IS vis-à-vis ICH. The presence of hypertension (100% vs. 88%) and smoking (50% vs. 26%) was significantly higher in ICH (P < 0.05). The presence of diabetes mellitus (40% vs. 18%) and CAD (12% vs. 2%) was significantly more in IS cases (P < 0.05). Consumption of alcohol was more prevalent in ICH patients compared to IS patients (30% vs. 24%). Based on mRS and BI at 90 days, ICH cases had significantly poorer functional outcome compared to IS cases (P < 0.0001). Mortality of IS cases (4%) was also significantly less compared to ICH cases (30%). A combination of hypertension, smoking, and history of alcohol consumption had a higher predilection for the occurrence of ICH, whereas a combination of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and CAD favored the occurrence of IS. The functional outcome of cases of ICH 90 days poststroke was significantly poorer compared to IS cases. The most important factors for poor outcome of ICH cases were more stroke severity at baseline compared to IS cases and the presence of intraventricular hemorrhages in some cases. Mortality was also found to be more in patients with ICH compared to IS.