Trends in C-Reactive Protein Levels Are Associated with Neurological Change Twenty-Four Hours after Thrombolysis for Acute Ischemic Stroke.

Background: Elevated inflammatory markers such as C-reactive protein (CRP) are associated with worse outcomes in patients thrombolysed for acute ischemic stroke (AIS).

Aims: To investigate whether changes in CRP levels are associated with neurological change after thrombolysis for AIS.

Methods: Retrospective analysis of a single-center database of consecutive thrombolysis cases for AIS from October 18, 2011, to June 15, 2015, inclusive.

A Fall in Systolic Blood Pressure 24 Hours after Thrombolysis for Acute Ischemic Stroke Is Associated with Early Neurological Recovery.

Background: Outcomes are worse in patients who underwent thrombolysis for acute ischemic stroke (AIS) with persistent hypertension. The objective of this study is to investigate whether fall in systolic blood pressure (SBP) has any relationship with neurological outcome 24 hours after thrombolysis, after adjusting for potentially confounding factors.

Methods: Retrospective analysis of a single-center database of consecutive thrombolysis cases for AIS.

The theory of reference values: an unfinished symphony.

The history of the theory of reference values can be written as an unfinished symphony. The first movement, allegro con fuoco, played from 1960 to 1980: a mix of themes devoted to the study of biological variability (intra-, inter-individual, short- and long-term), preanalytical conditions, standardization of analytical methods, quality control, statistical tools for deriving reference limits, all of them complex variations developed on a central melody: the new concept of reference values that would replace the notion of normality whose definition was unclear. Additional contributions (multivariate reference values, use of reference limits from broad sets of patient data, drug interferences) conclude the movement on the variability of laboratory tests.