Association between high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T levels and incident stroke in the elderly Japanese...

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Neurology
• Geriatrics

Background:

• Elevated high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) is a known indicator of cardiovascular disease.
• The association between hs-cTnT and incident stroke, particularly in elderly populations, requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between hs-cTnT levels and the incidence of various stroke types in an elderly Japanese cohort.
• To determine if hs-cTnT can serve as a predictive biomarker for stroke in older individuals.

Main Methods:

• A community-based cohort study involving 15,063 participants aged 69.6 ± 3.4 years.
• hs-cTnT levels were measured and participants were categorized into quartiles.
• Cox proportional hazard models were used to analyze the association between hs-cTnT levels and incident stroke, adjusting for multiple risk factors over a mean follow-up of 5.23 years.

Main Results:

• Higher hs-cTnT levels were significantly associated with an increased risk of ischemic stroke (Q1 vs. Q4, HR=2.24, p=0.023) after adjusting for confounders.
• No significant association was found between hs-cTnT levels and total stroke incidence (Q1 vs. Q4, HR=1.39, p=0.145).
• While numerical differences were observed for lacunar stroke, the association did not reach statistical significance.

Conclusions:

• Increased hs-cTnT concentrations are associated with a higher risk of ischemic stroke in the elderly Japanese population.
• hs-cTnT may serve as a valuable prognostic biomarker for identifying elderly individuals at risk for ischemic stroke.
• Further research is warranted to explore the specific mechanisms linking hs-cTnT to different stroke subtypes.