Association between Plasma L-Carnitine and Cognitive Impairment in Patients with Acute Ischemic Stroke

Bizhong Che, Haichang Chen, Aili Wang, Hao Peng, Xiaoqing Bu, Jintao Zhang, Zhong Ju, Tan Xu, Jiang He, Chongke Zhong, Yonghong Zhang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background: L-carnitine has been shown to exert neuroprotective effects on cerebral ischemia, mainly by improving mitochondrial function and reducing inflammation. L-carnitine supplementation has also been promoted to enhance cognitive function. However, the relationship between L-carnitine and cognitive impairment after ischemic stroke has seldom been studied. Objective: We aimed to evaluate the association between plasma L-carnitine and poststroke cognitive impairment. Methods: The study sample population was drawn from the China Antihypertensive Trial in Acute Ischemic Stroke. Plasma L-carnitine were measured at baseline in 617 patients with ischemic stroke using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Cognitive function was evaluated using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment at 3-month follow-up after ischemic stroke. Results: Plasma L-carnitine were inversely associated with cognitive impairment at 3 months after ischemic stroke, and the adjusted odds ratio (95% CI) for the highest versus lowest quartiles of L-carnitine was 0.60 (0.37, 0.98; p for trend=0.04). Each 1-SD increase in log-transformed L-carnitine concentration was significantly associated with a 15% (95% CI: 1%, 29%) reduction in the risk of cognitive impairment after stroke. The addition of L-carnitine to the model including conventional risk factors significantly improved the risk reclassification for cognitive impairment (net reclassification improvement: 17.9%, integrated discrimination improvement: 0.8%; both p<0.05). Furthermore, joint effects of L-carnitine and inflammation markers were observed, and patients with higher L-carnitine and a lower inflammatory status simultaneously had the lowest risk of poststroke cognitive impairment. Conclusion: The present study provided prospective evidence on the inverse association between plasma L-carnitine and cognitive impairment after ischemic stroke.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)259-270
Number of pages12
JournalJournal of Alzheimer's Disease
Volume86
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 2022

Keywords

  • Acute ischemic stroke
  • cognitive impairment
  • inflammation
  • L-carnitine

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Neuroscience
  • Clinical Psychology
  • Geriatrics and Gerontology
  • Psychiatry and Mental health

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Association between Plasma L-Carnitine and Cognitive Impairment in Patients with Acute Ischemic Stroke'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this