RESUMO
To study rheological properties of blood in patients with acute ischemic stroke treated with mexidol. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Sixty patients with acute stroke, including 32 patients who received mexidol (500 mg/IV/20 days) and 28 people who received magnesium sulfate (2000 mg/IV/20 days) were examined. The control group included 20 people without a cardiovascular pathology. Blood rheology (viscosity of whole blood, plasma viscosity, hematocrit, aggregation and deformability of erythrocytes, fibrinogen level) was evaluated in patients three times: for the first 12 hours, 3-5 days and 18-20 days after hospitalization. RESULTS: Hyperviscosity syndrome was observed in all patients with stroke. A significant decrease in blood viscosity was found in patients treated with mexidol: in the 3-5th day at low shear rates and in the 18-20th day at 3-100 s-1 shear rates. Significant differences in hematocrit (p=0.026) and fibrinogen levels (p=0.017) in patients treated with different drugs were found in the 18-20th day of the disease. Higher erythrocyte deformability index was recorded in patients treated with mexidol in the 3-5th day at shear rates of 90 and 890 s-1, in the 18-20th day at shear rates of 90-360 s-1. CONCLUSION: The study confirms the impact of mexidol on the fluidity of blood during the acute cerebral ischemia and shows its efficacy in reducing blood viscosity, decreasing the level of hematocrit and fibrinogen, increasing the deformability of erythrocytes.