Cerebral microbleeds are independently associated with arterial stiffness in stroke patients.

BACKGROUND: Cerebral microbleeds (CMB) are now receiving considerable attention for their association with stroke recurrence and white matter lesions (WML). Pulse wave velocity (PWV), which is a measure of arterial stiffness, was found to be one of the predictors of cardiovascular disease and stroke in a large population-based study. The current study set out to investigate the association between CMB and arterial stiffness. METHODS: Subjects included 255 patients with strokes, such as cerebral infarctions or transient ischemic attacks, who were enrolled at Korea University Stroke Registry, Ansan arm, between October 2005 and May 2007, and underwent MRI and PWV. CMB, stroke lesion, stroke subtype and WML were coded by researchers blind to clinical details. Arterial stiffness was assessed by measuring brachial-ankle PWV (baPWV). RESULTS: CMB were observed in 57 patients (22.4%), and were most frequently seen in the basal ganglia, followed by the cerebral cortex. The baPWV was significantly higher in patients with CMBs compared to those without (p < 0.01). After adjustment for demographics, vascular risk factors and hemodynamic parameters, baPWV proved to be significantly associated with CMB using a logistic regression test (odds ratio 1.119, 95% CI 1.013-1.237). CONCLUSIONS: PWV had an independent association with CMB in patients with stroke. These findings suggest that arterial stiffness may be pathophysiologically associated with CMB.