RESUMO
Objectives: To examine sex differences in disease profiles, management, and survival at 1 and 5 years after ischemic stroke (IS) among people with atrial fibrillation (AF). Methods: We performed a systematic literature search of reports of AF at IS onset according to sex. We undertook an individual participant data meta-analysis (IPDMA) of nine population-based stroke incidence studies conducted in Australasia, Europe, and South America (1993-2014). Poisson regression was used to estimate women:men mortality rate ratios (MRRs). Study-specific MRRs were combined using random effects meta-analysis. Results: In our meta-analysis based on aggregated data from 101 studies, the pooled AF prevalence was 23% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 22%-25%) in women and 17% (15%-18%) in men. Our IPDMA is of 1,862 IS-AF cases, with women (79.2 ± 9.1, years) being older than men (76.5 ± 9.5, years). Crude pooled mortality rate was greater for women than for men (1-year MRR 1.24; 1.01-1.51; 5-year 1.12; 1.03-1.22). However, the sex difference was greatly attenuated after accounting for age, prestroke function, and stroke severity (1-year 1.09; 0.97-1.22; 5-year 0.98; 0.84-1.16). Women were less likely to have anticoagulant prescription at discharge (odds ratio [OR] 0.94; 95% CI: 0.89-0.98) than men when pooling IPDMA and aggregated data. Conclusions: AF was more prevalent after IS among women than among men. Among IS-AF cases, women were less likely to receive anticoagulant agents at discharge; however, greater mortality rate in women was mostly attributable to prestroke factors. Further information needs to be collected in population-based studies to understand the reasons for lower treatment of AF in women.
RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Women are reported to have greater mortality after stroke than men, but the reasons are uncertain. We examined sex differences in mortality at 1 and 5 years after stroke and identified factors contributing to these differences. METHODS AND RESULTS: Individual participant data for incident strokes were obtained from 13 population-based incidence studies conducted in Europe, Australasia, South America, and the Caribbean between 1987 and 2013. Data on sociodemographics, stroke-related factors, prestroke health, and 1- and 5-year survival were obtained. Poisson modeling was used to estimate the mortality rate ratio (MRR) for women compared with men at 1 year (13 studies) and 5 years (8 studies) after stroke. Study-specific adjusted MRRs were pooled to create a summary estimate using random-effects meta-analysis. Overall, 16 957 participants with first-ever stroke followed up at 1 year and 13 216 followed up to 5 years were included. Crude pooled mortality was greater for women than men at 1 year (MRR 1.35; 95% confidence interval, 1.24-1.47) and 5 years (MRR 1.24; 95% confidence interval, 1.12-1.38). However, these pooled sex differences were reversed after adjustment for confounding factors (1 year MRR, 0.81; 95% confidence interval, 0.72-0.92 and 5-year MRR, 0.76; 95% confidence interval, 0.65-0.89). Confounding factors included age, prestroke functional limitations, stroke severity, and history of atrial fibrillation. CONCLUSIONS: Greater mortality in women is mostly because of age but also stroke severity, atrial fibrillation, and prestroke functional limitations. Lower survival after stroke among the elderly is inevitable, but there may be opportunities for intervention, including better access to evidence-based care for cardiovascular and general health.