Table 1.

The baseline (T0) characteristics of the whole group (n = 109), of women (n = 51), and of men (n = 58). The data are reported as the mean ± standard deviation or number (%). p-values refer to the Mann–Whitney U test or the chi-squared test, as appropriate.

Baseline Characteristics	Whole Group (n = 109)	Women (n = 51)	Men (n = 58)	p-Value
Age (years)	69 ± 11	72 ± 9	67 ± 12	0.027 *
Index stroke type
Ischemic	86 (79%)	42 (82%)	44 (76%)	0.407
Hemorrhagic	23 (21%)	9 (18%)	14 (24%)
Affected side
Right	58 (53%)	27 (53%)	31 (56%)	0.958
Left	51 (47%)	24 (47%)	27 (47%)
Smoking habit (smokers and ex-smokers)	50 (46%)	19 (37%)	31 (53%)	0.103
Comorbidities
Hypertension	93 (85%)	44 (86%)	49 (84%)	0.792
Type 2 Diabetes	28 (26%)	12 (24%)	16 (28%)	0.629
Dyslipidemia	45 (41%)	22 (43%)	23 (40%)	0.713
Heart disease	16 (17%)	4 (9%)	12 (23%)	0.059
Dysphagia	49 (45%)	24 (43%)	25 (47%)	0.679
Cumulative Illness Rating Scale (CIRS)
CIRS severity	2.2 ± 0.4	2.2 ± 0.4	2.1 ± 0.4	0.066
CIRS comorbidity	5.1 ± 2.0	5.3 ± 1.9	4.9 ± 2.2	0.284
Days from stroke onset to enrollment	87 ± 57	97 ± 62	77 ± 52	0.079
Activities of daily living (ADLs) assessment
modified Barthel Index (0–100)	42 ± 22	37 ± 19	46 ± 24	0.094
Hematochemical analyses
Glucose (mg/dL)	111 ± 39	116 ± 45	105 ± 33	0.292
Cholesterol (mg/dL)	126 ± 36	133 ± 41	119 ± 31	0.207
High Density Lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (mg/dL)	53 ± 17	57 ± 15	49 ± 18	0.005 *
Ratio (cholesterol/HDL cholesterol)	2.5 ± 0.9	2.4 ± 0.8	2.6 ± 1.0	0.443
Triglycerides (mg/dL)	123 ± 58	120 ± 61	126 ± 56	0.372
Albumin (g/L)	3.8 ± 0.5	3.7 ± 0.5	3.9 ± 0.4	0.281
Nutritional status assessment
Anthropometric value
Weight (kg)	69.2 ± 17.1	62.2 ± 13.2	75.3 ± 17.9	<0.001 ***
Height (m)	1.66 ± 0.10	1.60 ± 0.67	1.71 ± 0.10	<0.001 ***
Body Mass Index (BMI; kg/m2)	24.9 ± 4.8	24.2 ± 5.1	25.5 ± 4.4	0.055

* p-value < 0.05; *** p-value < 0.001.