Dynamics of blood pressure and neurological deficit in the acute phase of stroke among patients with and without diabetes mellitus

Abstract

Aim. The haemodynamics of patients with diabetes mellitus 2 during acute ischaemic stroke and their connection with the recovery of neurological deficit has been inadequately studied.Materials and Methods. We studied the blood pressure dynamics of 183 patients with mild-to-moderate acute ischaemic stroke receiving antihypertensive therapy, depending on whether or not they had type 2 diabetes mellitus.Results. In patients with diabetes, high blood pressure persisted during the first week, mainly because of the diastolic index, and they had a more rapid decline in blood pressure in the second week than those without diabetes. However, reaching the target blood pressure of <160/100 mmHg was faster in patients with diabetes, regardless of the intensity of antihypertensive therapy. Although diabetes significantly correlated with the efficiency of recovery of neurological deficit, it also showed a tendency to frequent functional impairment in patients with diabetes than those without diabetes.Conclusions. The results suggest that patients with diabetes and hypertension require less aggressive treatment, particularly in the second week of hospitalization. This may affect the efficiency of recovery of functional deficits. Further study of blood pressure dynamics and their relation to functional recovery of neurological deficit is required during the acute period after an ischaemic stroke in patients with diabetes.

Keywords

• diabetes mellitus
• ischaemic stroke
• hypertension
• blood pressure
• neurological deficits