Zhang W, et al. – The present inquiry was set to assess whether lower serum levels of insulin–like growth factor 1 (IGF–1) in the acute phase of ischemic stroke are correlated with higher risk of post–stroke depression (PSD) over a 1–year period. Findings revealed that low serum IGF–1 levels at admission were related to a high risk of developing PSD, implying that these alterations could be involved in the pathophysiology of depression symptoms in stroke patients.

Methods

• From July 1, 2014 to August 31, 2015, participants were first-ever acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients who were hospitalized.
• The investigation also involved 120 age-matched and sex-matched healthy controls from the same geographical area.
• After that, fasting blood samples were gathered within 24 hours of admission for IGF-I measurement.
• Finally, neurological and neuropsychological evaluations were directed at a 1-year follow-up.

Results

• 225 patients were watched for a 1-year follow-up, and seventy four of these patients (32.9%, 95%CI: 26.8%-39.0%) were diagnosed with PSD.
• It was observed in the findings that the depression distribution across the IGF-1 quartiles ranged between 61.4% (first quartile) and 8.9% (fourth quartile).
• In a multivariate model utilizing the first quartiles of the IGF-1 versus quartiles 2 through 4, together with the significant clinical variables, the marker showed prognostic information, and the odds ratio (OR) for first quartile was 3.35 [95% CI, 1.88-6.79; P = 0.001].