Thrombolysis outcomes among obese and overweight stroke patients: An age- and national institutes of health stroke scale-matched comparison

Background: Whether obese and overweight stroke patients respond differently to intravenous thrombolysis is unclear. The purpose of this study is to determine the influence of obesity and risk components of metabolic syndrome to stroke recovery in patients undergoing intravenous thrombolysis. Methods: Outcomes after recombinant tissue plasminogen activator treatment were compared between obese (body mass index [BMI] >30 kg/m²), overweight (BMI 25-30 kg/m²), and normal weight (BMI <25 kg/m²) patients. The association between BMI, risk components of the metabolic syndrome, and dose of recombinant tissue plasminogen activator per kilogram of body weight to stroke outcomes were assessed in a multivariable model. Results: A total of 169 patients (mean age 75 years; baseline National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score 11) were included. No differences in the frequency of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage and poor functional recovery were observed among obese, overweight, and normal weight patients. A linear trend toward worse stroke recovery was observed in patients with a greater number of metabolic risk components (P for trend.043). By contrast, there were no significant associations between the number of risk components of metabolic syndrome with respect to symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage. Using stepwise regression analyses, age, baseline stroke severity, and the number of risk components of the metabolic syndrome accounted for 52% variation in functional recovery after intravenous thrombolysis. Conclusions: Acute stroke outcomes do not differ between obese and overweight patients undergoing intravenous thrombolysis. The number of metabolic risk components contributes more significantly to functional recovery following intravenous thrombolysis.