Is low cystatin C in acute stroke a blessing or a curse? a pilot study on Egyptian patients

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Abstract

Introduction
Cerebrovascular stroke is a costly disease. Elevated cystatin C levels were independently associated with both ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke. In contrast, cystatin C has been found to play protective roles in the nervous system.
Aim
The aim of the present study was to find out the relationship between serum cystatin C level and the outcome of acute cerebrovascular stroke in middle aged and elderly Egyptian patients.
Patients and methods
This study was conducted on 49 patients with recent stroke and normal kidney functions and 30 healthy matched controls. All patients were followed up for 1 week. Cystatin C was determined for both patients and controls.
Results
Cystatin C level tended to be lower in patients than in controls, both below and above the age of 60. Females tended to have higher levels of cystatin C. There was a gradual decrease in the cystatin C level according to the outcome, being least in the deteriorated group. However, the differences were insignificant.
Conclusion
The results suggest that low cystatin C level - in a patient with normal kidney function - may predict worse prognosis. Accordingly, creatinine estimation is mandatory in assessing the kidney function in these patients and cystatin cannot replace it, as it may represent another risk factor.

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