November 4, 2013Open Access

Left Atrial Appendage Volume Increased in More Than Half of Patients with Cryptogenic Stroke

Structured PICO

Does increased left atrial appendage (LAA) volume associate with cryptogenic stroke/TIA in patients without atrial fibrillation?

Population

82 patients with acute stroke/TIA of cryptogenic etiology (mean age 57.8±10.5, 69.5% male) and 40 age- and gender-matched control subjects without cardiovascular diseases.

Intervention

Cardiac computed tomography (cCT) for volumetric analysis of the left atrial appendage (LAA) and left atrium (LA)

Comparator

Age- and gender-matched control subjects without cardiovascular diseases undergoing coronary CTA for exclusion of coronary artery disease

Outcome

Left atrial appendage (LAA) volume adjusted for body surface area (mL/m2)surrogate

Increased left atrial appendage volume is present in over half of patients with cryptogenic stroke, suggesting LAA enlargement may be an independent risk factor or marker for occult cardioembolism.

Abstract

Background: Ischemic strokes without a well-defined etiology are labeled as cryptogenic, and account for 30-40% of strokes in stroke registries. The left atrial appendage (LAA) is the most typical origin for intracardiac thrombus formation when associated with atrial fibrillation. Here, we examined whether increased LAA volume detected with cardiac computed tomography (cCT) constitutes a risk factor in cryptogenic stroke patients.

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