Serum Levels of Cytokines, Glucose, and Hemoglobin as Possible Predictors of Poststroke Depression, and Association With Poststroke Fatigue

Depression is a frequent and potentially disabling sequela of stroke. In the present study, we investigated the ability of stroke type, infarct volume, and laterality, and the levels of various cytokines and other blood components in the acute phase of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) in 45 patients, to predict the level of depression (Beck Depression Inventory [BDI] score) at 6, 12, and 18 months after its onset. The BDI score at 12 months post-stroke was positively correlated with the acute serum level of glucose (r = 0.32, p =.038). When excluding the patients using antidepressants, the correlation between glucose level and later depression became significant at all three time points. A general association was found between depression and fatigue. Novel findings are that high acute serum levels of glucose may predict depression after AIS, a glucose level of approximately 126 mg/dL at admission might be a critical limit. Furthermore, depression and fatigue are two generally related-although independent-sequelae of stroke. Our findings did not support a causal immunological etiology for poststroke depression (PSD), as has been suggested previously for poststroke fatigue (PSF) in the same study sample.