Associations of Soluble Inflammatory and Endothelial Activation Biomarkers with Cognitive Function Over Three Years...

Vascular inflammation is involved in the pathophysiology of post-stroke cognitive impairment. We aimed to assess whether blood-based biomarkers of inflammation and endothelial dysfunction, such as interleukin 6 (IL-6), vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM-1), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), are associated with cognitive function over time in a prospective cohort of first-ever ischemic stroke patients. Data were obtained from the Prospective Cohort with Incident Stroke Berlin (NCT01363856). Cognitive function was assessed with the Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status-modified (TICS-m) at 1 to 3 years of follow-up. Associations of baseline levels of IL-6, VCAM-1, and TNF-α with cognitive function over time were estimated using a linear mixed model adjusted for demographics, education, vascular risk factors, stroke severity, ischemic stroke subtype, and severity of white matter hyperintensity. We included 570 patients with mild-to-moderate ischemic stroke and baseline data on biomarker levels. The mean age was 67 (± 12 SD), 38.6% were female, and the median National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) was 2 (IQR 1-4). Frequency of cognitive impairment defined as TICS-m score ≤ 31 was 21.9% at year one, 15.4% at year two, and 11.6% at year three. Higher log-transformed levels of IL-6 and VCAM-1 were associated with lower TICS-m scores over time in the adjusted linear mixed model including white matter hyperintensity burden (IL-6: β = -2.0, 95% CI -3.3 to -0.7, p = 0.003; VCAM-1: β = -4.1, 95% CI -7.3 to -1.0, p = 0.01). In patients with mild-to-moderate first-ever ischemic stroke, higher baseline levels of IL-6 and VCAM-1 were associated with lower Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status-modified during 3 years of follow-up.ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01363856.