A Korean research team has revealed why female patients suffer from worse stroke outcomes than male patients. 

Led by Professor Kim Dong-eog, Dr. Chung Jin-yong at the Department of Neurology of Dongguk University Ilsan Hospital and JLK Chief Medical Officer Ryu Wi-sun, the research team analyzed MRI images and clinical data of 6,464 patients hospitalized for acute ischemic stroke, in a collaborative study with neurology departments at 11 university hospitals across the nation between May 2011 and January 2013. 

After following up on their prognosis, they found that the prognosis of stroke was worse in women due to biological differences in the area of cerebrovascular stenosis and the location of the stroke.

The results showed that female patients had higher stroke severity, a 3.5 percent higher probability to experience deterioration within three weeks, and a 4.5 percent higher risk to suffer unfavorable functional outcome for three consecutive months. 

The biological difference was more pronounced in people in their 50s or older, and this was because the frequency of middle cerebral artery stenosis and that of cerebral infarction damaging motor nerves are about 5 percent more common in female patients, according to the study. 

"This study not only demonstrates that female stroke patients have more severe symptoms and a worse prognosis but also shows that this is mainly due to biological differences in the area of cerebrovascular stenosis and the location of the stroke,” Professor Kim said.

“Further studies are needed to consider other biological mechanisms and the possibility that stroke care is less aggressive in older women."

Supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea, Goyang City, and the Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, the study was recently published in the journal Neurology (IF: 12.26).