Plasma Osteoprotegerin and Cognitive Impairment after Ischemic Stroke

Plasma osteoprotegerin (OPG) has been linked to poor prognosis following stroke, but its impact on post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) is unknown. The purpose of our work was to analyze the relationship of OPG with PSCI. Our study included 613 ischemic stroke subjects with plasma OPG levels. We used the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) to assess PSCI. PSCI was defined as MMSE score <25 or MoCA score <23. As assessed by the MMSE score, the adjusted odds ratio for PSCI in the highest OPG tertile was 1.77, with a 95% confidence interval of 1.09 to 2.89 (Ptrend=0.021), compared to that in the lowest tertile. We observed a positive linear relationship of plasma OPG levels with 3- month PSCI (P for linearity=0.046). Incorporating plasma OPG into conventional risk factors enhanced PSCI risk reclassification (all P <0.05). Consistent results were discovered when PSCI was evaluated using the MoCA score. High plasma OPG levels were related to an elevated risk of 3-month PSCI, indicating that OPG might be an effective biomarker for predicting PSCI.