Relationship between baseline haemoglobin content and poststroke cognitive impairment

This study aims to explore the relationship between baseline haemoglobin (Hb) content and poststroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) within 3 months following an acute ischaemic stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA).Data are from a national multicentre prospective study that recruited patients with acute ischaemic stroke/TIA within 7 days. Cognitive function was assessed by the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). PSCI was defined as a MoCA score ≤ 23 within 3 months after stroke onset. The relationship between Hb content and PSCI was assessed by a multiple regression model after adjusting for other potential confounders. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated.A total of 2240 patients were included in this study. The average age was 60.96 ± 10.76 years old, and 784 (35.00%) patients experienced cognitive impairment within 3 months after acute ischaemic stroke/TIA. Patients with anaemia had a significantly lower MoCA score than those without anaemia at the 3-month follow-up (22.53 ± 5.56 versus 23.68 ± 4.77, P = 0.001). In a multiple regression analysis after adjusting for other confounders, patients with high Hb content were associated with a lower risk of PSCI than those with anaemia (OR 0.64, 95% CI 0.43-0.94, P = 0.02). Hb content was negatively related to the risk of PSCI within 3 months after stroke onset (OR 0.93, 95% CI 0.85-0.94 per 10 g/L increment, P = 0.04).Baseline Hb content was an independent protective predictor for PSCI in patients with acute ischaemic stroke/TIA.