SILENT BRAIN INFARCTION IN STROKE PATIENTS: A PILOT DOUBLE-CENTER STUDY

Silent Brain Infarcts (SBI) are associated with an increased risk of subsequent stroke. SBI are incidentally revealed by CT or MRI executed in stroke patients. A prospective study was undertaken involving 200 consecutive patients aged >45 years with brain infarct admitted in University of Alberta Hospital, Canada (100 patients) and Valie-Asr Hospital, Iran (100 patients) in 2003. Patients were divided in age groups aged <65 and >65. All of the patients underwent brain CT.A stroke neurologist with knowledge of stroke history subsequently reviewed the scans and diagnosed SBI. The relations of race, gender and age groups with SBI were analyzed with chi-square and Fisher exact tests. SBI were present in 26.9% of patients aged <65 and 48.6% of patients aged >65. Canadian patients were significantly more preponderant to SBI in age group> 65 (p=0.013). The mean age of Canadian patients was significantly higher than Persians (p<0.001). Within a total of 200 patients the female gender was significantly more preponderant to SBI (p= 0.02) which was not related to age and race groups. Small vessel territory infarct was present in 87% of our patients with SBI. SBI are common in stroke patients. The frequency of SBI is higher in female gender and the elderly.