Background
Several studies have suggested that asthma is associated with an increased risk of
stroke. However, the results are inconsistent. The aim of this study is to investigate
the relation of asthma and the risk of stroke through a systematic review and meta-analysis
of published research.
Methods
Pertinent studies were identified by a search of the PubMed and the Web of Science
databases to June 2015. Study-specific hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals
(CIs) were pooled using fixed-effect or random-effect models when appropriate. Associations
were tested in subgroups representing different participants and study characteristics.
Publication bias was assessed with Egger's test.
Results
Five articles comprising 524,637 participants and 6031 stroke cases were eligible
for inclusion. Asthma was associated significantly with increased risk of stroke,
and the pooled HR was 1.32 (95% CI: 1.13, 1.54, I2 = 80.4%). Subgroup analyses revealed that the association between asthma and stroke
risk was stronger among female patients (HR = 1.42, 95% CI: 1.15-1.76) and prospective
cohort study design (HR = 1.52, 95% CI: 1.21-1.91).
Conclusion
Asthma is associated with a significantly increased risk of stroke. This finding may
have clinical and public health importance.
Key Words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: January 20, 2016
Accepted:
November 22,
2015
Received in revised form:
November 8,
2015
Received:
September 9,
2015
Footnotes
This work was supported by a grant from the Natural Science Foundation of Anhui Province (1408085MH159).
Identification
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jstrokecerebrovasdis.2015.11.030
Copyright
© 2016 National Stroke Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
