Table 1.
Baseline Characteristics of the Study Subjects (N=11 720)
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Age, mean±SD, y | 67.53±12.87 |
| Men, N (%) | 6888 (58.8) |
| Hypertension, N (%) | 7917 (67.6) |
| Diabetes mellitus, N (%) | 3834 (32.7) |
| Hyperlipidemia, N (%) | 3776 (32.2) |
| Previous stroke or TIA, N (%) | 2254 (19.2) |
| Current smoking, N (%) | 3099 (26.4) |
| Symptomatic carotid artery disease, N (%) | 1268 (10.8) |
| Atrial fibrillation, N (%) | 2450 (20.9) |
| Coronary heart disease, N (%) | 1067 (9.1) |
| Stroke subtype, N (%) | |
| Large‐artery atherosclerosis | 4322 (36.9) |
| Small‐vessel occlusion | 2070 (17.7) |
| Cardioembolism | 2506 (21.4) |
| Other determined* | 254 (2.2) |
| Undetermined † | 2568 (21.9) |
| Initial NIHSS, median (IQR) | 3 (1–8) |
| Discharge mRS score, median (IQR) | 2 (1–4) |
| Previous antiplatelet use, N (%) | 3295 (28.1) |
| Previous statin use, N (%) | 1690 (14.4) |
| Antiplatelet use at discharge, N (%) | 9097 (77.6) |
| Statin use at discharge, N (%) | 9652 (82.4) |
| High‐intensity statin use at discharge, N (%) ‡ | 3153 (26.9) |
| SBP, mean±SD, mm Hg | 147.26±27.29 |
| LDL cholesterol, mean±SD, mg/dL | 111.62±36.43 |
| HDL cholesterol, mean±SD, mg/dL | 44.48±12.11 |
| GFR, mean±SD, mL/min per 1.73 m2 | 102.48±46.42 |
GFR indicates glomerular filtration rate; HDL, high‐density lipoprotein; IQR, interquartile range; LDL, low‐density lipoprotein; mRS, modified Rankin Scale; NIHSS, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale; SBP, systolic blood pressure; and TIA, transient ischemic attack.
Other determined cause was defined as rare causes of ischemic stroke with diverse entities (details in study by Ko et al 20 ).
Undetermined cause was defined as follows: (1) not being classified as large‐artery atherosclerosis, small‐vessel disease, or cardioembolism and no cardioembolic source despite comprehensive workups; (2) no workup for stroke cause; or (3) coexistence of >1 stroke cause.
According to the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Guideline on Treatment of Blood Cholesterol (2013) (≥50% reduction in LDL cholesterol).