Table. Characteristics and findings of studies examining sex differences in functional outcomes and QOL after acute stroke.
| Time period |
Setting | Study design | n | Outcomes | Follow-up (months) |
Measures of association* (95% CI) |
Adjustment | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Women | Men | ||||||||
| European studies | |||||||||
| Wyller and co-workers128 | 1992–1993 | Oslo, Norway (single hospital) | Consecutive stroke admissions | 42 | 45 | BI (median scores) | 12 | OR 3.3 (1.2–9.0) | Age |
| Di Carlo and co-workers11 | 1993–1994 | 7 European countries (22 hospitals) | Admissions for first-ever stroke | 2260 | 2239 | Dependent BI (<75), mRS (>1) | 3 | BI: OR 1.4 (1.1–1.8); mRS: OR 1.5 (1.1–1.9) | Age, country |
| Roquer and co-workers9 | 1996–2001 | Barcelona, Spain (single hospital) | Consecutive admissions for first-ever stroke | 772 | 809 | mRS (>2) | 3 | OR 1.9 (1.5–2.4) | None |
| Glader and co-workers7 | 2001 | Riks-Stroke Registry, Sweden (75 hospitals) | National Stroke Quality Registry | 9666 | 9881 | Independent ADL, INH | 3 | ADL: OR 0.7 (0.7–0.8); INH: OR 1.5 (1.3–1.6) | Age |
| Niewada and co-workers12 | 1992–1996 | International Stroke Trial | Clinical trial, ischaemic stroke only | 8003 | 9367 | Death or dependent | 6 | OR 1.4 (1.3–1.5) | Age, consciousness level, stroke subtype, AF, SBP, aspirin use |
| North American studies | |||||||||
| Kelly-Hayes and co-workers129 | 1982–1999 | Framingham Study | Cohort | 63 | 45 | Dependent BI (<60), INH | 6 | BI: OR 2.1 (0.8–6.0) INH: OR 2.7 (1.0–7.9) | Age, stroke subtype |
| Kapral and co-workers10 | 2001–2002 | Canadian Stroke Registry (21 tertiary care hospitals) | Consecutive acute stroke or TIA admissions | 1527 | 1796 | Physical function (SIS-16), HUI | 6 | Lower SIS-16 scores in women (p=0.0001); no difference in HUI | Age, Charlson index, consciousness level, stroke subtype, severity, marital status, living situation |
| Lai and co-workers35 | 1995–1998 | Kansas City Stroke Study (12 hospitals) | Cohort acute stroke admissions | 245 | 214 | Independent BI (≥95), IADL (8 of 9), physical function (SF-36 ≥90) | 6 | BI: HR 0.9 (0.7–1.3); IADL: HR 0.5 (0.3–0.8); SF-36: HR 0.8 (0.4–1.6) | Age, stroke severity, depressive symptoms, pre-stroke physical functioning, comorbidities |
| Gargano and Reeves106 | 2002 | Michigan Stroke Registry (9 hospitals) | Cohort acute stroke admissions | 210 | 163 | Independent BI (≥95), SS-QOL | 3 | BI: OR 0.4 (0.2–0.9); lower QOL in women | Age, race, discharge mRS, ambulatory status, stroke subtype, proxy status, previous stroke |
*
Women versus men. ADL=activities of daily living. AF=atrial fibrillation. BI=Barthel index. mRS=modified Rankin scale. HR=hazard ratio. HUI=health utilities index. IADL=instrumental activities of daily living. INH=institutionalisation or nursing home. OR=odds ratio. SIS-16=16-item stroke impact scale. SS-QOL=stroke-specific quality-of-life scale. SBP=systolic blood pressure. SF-36=36-item short-form health survey. TIA=transient ischaemic attack.