Table 1. Demographic and clinical data of the study cohort.
| Patients | Healthy Volunteers | ||||||
| Age | Sex | Main clinical features (age of onset) | Risk Factors | Age | Sex | Risk Factors | |
| Pair 1 | 49 | F | Seizures (44) | None | 48 | F | None |
| Pair 2 | 51 | M | Stroke (40) | Smoker/Dyslipidemia | 51 | M | Previous smoker |
| Pair 3 | 36 | F | None | None | 36 | F | Previous smoker |
| Pair 4 | 58 | F | None | None | 56 | F | None |
| Pair 5 | 38 | F | Migraine (35) | None | 39 | F | None |
| Pair 6 | 45 | F | None | None | 42 | F | None |
| Pair 7 | 52 | M | Stroke | Dyslipidemia | 53 | M | None |
| Pair 8 | 36 | F | Migraine, TIAs* (33) | PFO** | 35 | F | None |
| Pair 9 | 35 | M | None | Previous smoker | 33 | M | Smoker |
| Pair 10 | 38 | M | Migraine (23) | Obesity | 41 | M | None |
* TIAs  =  transient ischemic attacks.
** PFO =  patent foramen ovale.