Validation of the RRE-90 Scale to Predict Stroke Risk after Transient Symptoms with Infarction: A Prospective Cohort Study

Background and Purpose

The risk of stroke after a transient ischemic attack (TIA) for patients with a positive diffusion-weighted image (DWI), i.e., transient symptoms with infarction (TSI), is much higher than for those with a negative DWI. The aim of this study was to validate the predictive value of a web-based recurrence risk estimator (RRE; http://www.nmr.mgh.harvard.edu/RRE/) of TSI.

Methods

Data from the prospective hospital-based TIA database of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University were analyzed. The RRE and ABCD² scores were calculated within 7 days of symptom onset. The predictive outcome was ischemic stroke occurrence at 90 days. The receiver-operating characteristics curves were plotted, and the predictive value of the two models was assessed by computing the C statistics.

Results

A total of 221 eligible patients were prospectively enrolled, of whom 46 (20.81%) experienced a stroke within 90 days. The 90-day stroke risk in high-risk TSI patients (RRE ≥4) was 3.406-fold greater than in those at low risk (P <0.001). The C statistic of RRE (0.681; 95% confidence interval CI], 0.592–0.771) was statistically higher than that of ABCD² score (0.546; 95% CI, 0.454–0.638; Z = 2.115; P = 0.0344) at 90 days.

Conclusion

The RRE score had a higher predictive value than the ABCD² score for assessing the 90-day risk of stroke after TSI.