No Link Found Between Right-to-Left Shunt and Stroke After Adjusting for Age and Gender
Author Information
Author(s): Holger Poppert, Melanie Morschhaeuser, Regina Feurer, Angelina Bockelbrink, Jens Schwarze, Lorena Esposito, Peter Heider, Dirk Sander, Bernhard Hemmer
Primary Institution: Klinikum Rechts der Isar, Technische Universitaet Muenchen
Hypothesis
Is there an association between right-to-left shunt and cerebral ischemia when adjusted for gender and age?
Conclusion
The study found no significant association between right-to-left shunt and stroke after adjusting for age and gender.
Supporting Evidence
- 28% of male patients and 42% of female patients had a right-to-left shunt during the Valsalva maneuver.
- Patients with right-to-left shunt were younger than those without.
- After adjusting for age, no significant association between PFO and stroke of unknown origin was found.
Takeaway
The researchers looked at many patients to see if a certain heart condition caused strokes, but they found it didn't really matter when they considered age and gender.
Methodology
The study analyzed 763 patients with cerebral ischemia using contrast-enhanced transcranial Doppler sonography to check for right-to-left shunt.
Potential Biases
There may be biases due to the exclusion of patients with artificial heart valves and those without a definite diagnosis of cerebral ischemia.
Limitations
The study may not represent very old patients or those with severe strokes who couldn't perform the necessary tests.
Participant Demographics
The study included 494 male and 269 female patients, with an average age of 58.2 years.
Statistical Information
P-Value
0.001
Confidence Interval
1.00–2.43
Statistical Significance
p<0.001
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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