Objective: To describe the design and rationale for the genetic analysis of acute and chronic cerebrovascular neuroimaging phenotypes detected on clinical MRI in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) within the scope of the MRI-GENetics Interface Exploration (MRI-GENIE) study.
Methods: MRI-GENIE capitalizes on the existing infrastructure of the Stroke Genetics Network (SiGN). In total, 12 international SiGN sites contributed MRIs of 3,301 patients with AIS.
Background And Purpose: Acute infarct volume, often proposed as a biomarker for evaluating novel interventions for acute ischemic stroke, correlates only moderately with traditional clinical end points, such as the modified Rankin Scale. We hypothesized that the topography of acute stroke lesions on diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging may provide further information with regard to presenting stroke severity and long-term functional outcomes.
Methods: Data from a prospective stroke repository were limited to acute ischemic stroke subjects with magnetic resonance imaging completed within 48 hours from last known well, admission NIH Stroke Scale (NIHSS), and 3-to-6 months modified Rankin Scale scores.