Post-stroke atorvastatin treatment reduces neurological deficits and mortality rate in the stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rat

Several large clinical trials have demonstrated that 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl (HMG)-CoA reductase inhibitors decreased the incidence of stroke independently of their cholesterol-lowering effect. We have investigated the effect of post-stroke treatment with atorvastatin on neurological deficits and mortality in stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR-SP). The vehicle-treated group showed significantly aggravated neurological deficits compared with those observed on the first day of stroke. In contrast, the post-stroke oral administration of atorvastatin at 3 or 30 mg kg(-1)/day significantly ameliorated these neurological deficits. Atorvastatin improved the survival rate in a dose-dependent manner, with this effect being significant at 30 mg kg(-1)/day. Atorvastatin did not affect blood pressure, heart rate or total cholesterol in SHR-SP at either dose. In contrast, it significantly increased plasma nitric oxide (NO) levels at both doses. These results indicated that post-stroke administration of atorvastatin ameliorated neurological deficits and prolonged survival, which might have resulted from increased plasma NO, apart from its effect on cholesterol level and blood pressure in SHR-SP. In conclusion, this study demonstrated the protective effects of post-stroke administration of atorvastatin against stroke in SHR-SP.