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Admission Blood Pressure of Stroke Patients and Its Relationship to One-week Case Fatality - A Preliminary Study


FI Ojini
NU Okubadejo
SA Ogun
SI Akokhia
MA Danesi

Abstract

Background: High blood pressure is often said to be associated with poor outcome in stroke. However, there remains some uncertainly about the relationship of blood pressure to mortality in stroke.


Objective: This study seeks to determine the influence of admission blood pressure on early mortality of stroke patients at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH).


Methods: Clinical and laboratory data were collected prospectively according to a standardized protocol, from stroke patients admitted to LUTH in 1999 and 2000, and information obtained about the time of onset of stroke, history of hypertension, level of consciousness, admission blood pressure, ECG findings of left ventricular hypertrophy, and one-week outcome.


Results: hypertension was present in 87.3% of strokes on presentation. Strokes with mild to moderate hypertension had the lowest case fatality of 5.6%, while those with isolated systolic hypertension had the highest fatality of 40%. There was a u-shaped relationship between admission blood pressure and one-week case fatality, with strokes that had mild to moderate hypertension having a significantly lower one-week case fatality than strokes with normal blood pressure and severe hypertension


Conclusion: Most patients with stroke have hypertension on presentation. It appears that mild to moderate hypertension on presentation is associated with a significantly better one-week outcome for stroke patients than other categories of blood pressure.


Nig. Qt. J. Hosp. Med. Vol.12(1-4) 2002: 40-43

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eISSN: 0189-2657