A single-center hospital-based prospective study to assess the predictive factors for stoke severity during admission

Background and Objective: Stroke is the most common cause of death and the leading cause of disability worldwide. We aimed to study predictive factors of stroke severity which determine stroke mortality and morbidity. Methods: It is a prospective observational study to analyze predictors of stroke severity in 653 acute stroke patients performed over a period of 18 months. Results: The mean age of stroke was 61.66 years, with males being 317 (48.55%). Stroke severity was significantly associated with parameters such as age, gender, education and economic state, awareness of vascular risk factors, risk factors including family history of coronary artery disease/stroke, alcohol intake, symptom timeline including the first evaluated area and time duration between the last known normal and hospital arrival, with respect to symptoms at presentation, including headache, speech difficulty, and dysphagia, examination findings including respiratory rate, Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) grade, and higher mental function, with respect to laboratory parameters, including total leukocyte count, neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio, and creatinine, and radiological parameters including Doppler findings. Conclusion: The study has shown that old age, male gender, an increased time duration between the last known normal and hospital arrival, lack of awareness of risk factors, and alcohol consumption for a duration of more than 1 year were independent predictors of increased stroke severity at admission. Headache, dysphagia, low GCS, sub-normal higher mental functions, an abnormal respiratory rate, abnormal Doppler findings, an increased total leukocyte count, and creatinine were independent predictors of stroke severity at admission.