BACKGROUND: Lacunar infarctions represent 25% of ischemic strokes. Lacunar stroke and transient ischemic attack (TIA) share a number of symptoms. This study aimed to assess the potential risk factors for lacunar infarction in patients with TIA.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: This was a retrospective study performed at the Beijing Military General Hospital in patients with TIA admitted between March 2010 and December 2011. Patients were grouped according to lacunar vs. no lacunar infarction. All patients were diagnosed using diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) on brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Brain angiography (computed tomography and MRI) was used to measure intracranial stenosis. Carotid artery stenosis was measured by ultrasound.

RESULTS: Patients with TIA and lacunar infarction (n=298) were older than those without lacunar infarction (n=157) (69.4±10.0 vs. 58.9±9.0 years, P<0.001) and showed a higher frequency of males (51.7% vs. 41.4%, P=0.037), hypertension (75.3% vs. 45.9%, P<0.001), diabetes (32.6% vs. 21.0%, P=0.010), hyperlipidemia (53.4% vs. 29.3%, P<0.001), carotid stenosis (73.2% vs. 40.1%, P<0.001), and intracranial stenosis (55.6% vs. 31.9%, P<0.001), but a lower frequency of alcohol drinking (8.1% vs. 14.0%, P=0.045). Lacunar infarction mostly involved the anterior circulation (62.8%). Multivariate analysis showed that age (odds ratio (OR)=1.085, 95% confidence interval (95%CI): 1.054–1.117, P<0.001), hypertension (OR=1.738, 95%CI: 1.041–2.903, P=0.035), hyperlipidemia (OR=2.169, 95%CI: 1.307–3.601, P=0.003), and carotid stenosis (OR=1.878, 95%CI: 1.099–3.206, P=0.021) were independently associated with lacunar infarction.

CONCLUSIONS: Age, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and carotid stenosis were independently associated with silent lacunar infarction in patients with TIA.

Keywords: Carotid Stenosis - complications, Cerebral Angiography, Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Hyperlipidemias - complications, Hypertension - complications, Ischemic Attack, Transient - etiology, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Risk Factors, Stroke, Lacunar - etiology