Jeong SM, et al. – This cross–sectional study was carried out to examine the relationship between uric acid (UA) and cerebral microbleed (CMB) in a general population taking into consideration sex–related differences. The researchers concluded that high serum UA value was correlated with the higher prevalence of CMB in male, but a lower prevalence of CMB in female subjects.

• The researchers selected 2686 individuals of 40–79 years of age (1403 men and 1283 women) who underwent regular health screenings, including brain magnetic resonance imaging, at Seoul National University Hospital Health Promotion Center.
• They categorized subjects into 3 groups according to tertiles of UA levels by sex.
• They assessed the presence and location of CMB by gradient-recalled echo magnetic resonance imaging.

• In this study, the prevalence of CMB was 3.8%.
• The highest tertile of UA in male subjects was independently correlated with the presence of CMB compared with the lowest tertile of UA (adjusted odds ratio, 2.46; P = 0.013) in multivariate logistic regression analysis by sex.
• Meanwhile, compared with the lowest tertile of UA, the highest tertile of UA in female subjects was inversely associated with CMB (adjusted odds ratio, 0.39; P = 0.040).