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Increased stroke risk in B ell's palsy patients without steroid treatment
Author(s) -
Lee C.C.,
Su Y.C.,
Chien S.H.,
Ho H.C.,
Hung S.K.,
Lee M.S.,
Chou P.,
Chiu B. C.H.,
Huang Y.S.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
european journal of neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.881
H-Index - 124
eISSN - 1468-1331
pISSN - 1351-5101
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-1331.2012.03765.x
Subject(s) - medicine , bell's palsy , stroke (engine) , steroid use , physical medicine and rehabilitation , palsy , pediatrics , alternative medicine , pathology , mechanical engineering , engineering
Background and purpose To investigate the risk of stroke development following a diagnosis of B ell's palsy in a nationwide follow‐up study. Methods and materials Information on B ell's palsy and other factors relevant for stroke was obtained for 433 218 eligible subjects without previous stroke who had ambulatory visit in 2004. Of those, 897 patients with B ell's palsy were identified. Over a median 2.9 years of follow‐up, 4581 incident strokes were identified. We estimated hazard ratios ( HR ) and 95% confidence intervals [ CI ] with C ox proportional hazard models adjusting for age, sex, co‐morbidities, and important risk factors. Standardized incidence ratio of stroke amongst patients with B ell's palsy was analyzed. Results Compared with non‐ B ell's palsy patients, patients with B ell's palsy had a 2.02‐times (95% CI , 1.42–2.86) higher risk of stroke. The adjusted HR of developing stroke for patients with B ell's palsy treated with and without systemic steroid were 1.67 (95% CI , 0.69–4) and 2.10 (95%, 1.40–3.07), respectively. Conclusions Patients with B ell's palsy carry a higher risk of stroke than the general population. Our data suggest that these patients might benefit from a more intensive stroke prevention therapy and regular follow‐up after initial diagnosis.