Admission serum cholinesterase concentration for prediction of in-hospital mortality in very elderly patients with acute ischemic stroke: a retrospective study

Cholinesterase as a sensitive biomarker for prognosis in a variety of conditions but it is rare in stroke studies. The very elderly (≥ 80 years of age) represent the most susceptible group of ischemic stroke. We aimed to determine whether admission serum cholinesterase concentration had any effect on clinical outcome in very elderly patients (individuals aged ≥ 80 years) with acute ischemic stroke. A retrospective record review was conducted in two tertiary university hospitals. Elderly patients aged ≥ 80 years admitted with a diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke from January 1, 2014 to November 30, 2019, who had a cholinesterase concentration drawn, were included. The patients were grouped based on the inflection points of the locally weighted regression and smoothing scatterplot (LOESS) curve between cholinesterase levels and in-hospital mortality (study outcome) with lower concentration as reference group. A total of 612 patients were admitted with a diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke, and 569 met the inclusion criteria. A threshold effect was identified using regression smoothing scatterplot (LOESS), with one cutoff point of 4.0 KU/L. There was a significant difference in-hospital mortality was observed (P