Cardiomyocyte Injury Following Acute Ischemic Stroke

Summary

Participation Requirements

Description

Myocardial injury (i.e. elevated cardiac troponin levels) is a frequent cardiac complication during the first few days after an ischemic stroke and is associated with a poor functional outcome. Myocardial injury represents one essential part of a broad spectrum of cardiac complications ranging to se...

Myocardial injury (i.e. elevated cardiac troponin levels) is a frequent cardiac complication during the first few days after an ischemic stroke and is associated with a poor functional outcome. Myocardial injury represents one essential part of a broad spectrum of cardiac complications ranging to severe arrhythmia or heart failure. There is evidence that, in the majority of patients, the underlying mechanism of stroke-associated myocardial injury is not coronary-mediated myocardial ischemia but rather stroke-induced functional and structural interference in the central autonomic network. The investigators hypothesize that this causes a dysregulation of normal neuronal cardiac control leading to myocardial edema and stunning ('Stroke-Heart-Syndrome') CORONA-IS is a prospective, observational, single-centered cohort study that will recruit 300 patients with acute ischemic stroke. According to serial high sensitivity cTn levels during the first 24h after admission, patients will be assigned to three groups (no myocardial injury, chronic myocardial injury, acute myocardial injury). Study procedures include cardiovascular MRI and transthoracic echocardiography to visualize (transient) cardiac dysfunction and provide detailed tissue characterization, 20-minute Holter-monitoring with an analysis of specific autonomic markers, and a systematic bio-banking to study further mechanisms such as altered microRNA signatures. A follow-up for cardiovascular events will be conducted one year after enrolment to study long-term effects of stoke-associated myocardial injury. The aim of the CORONA-IS study is to develop a better understanding of the characteristics and the pathophysiology of stroke-induced acute myocardial injury ('Stroke-Heart-Syndrome') in order to identify patients at risk and improve diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.

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