Serum Uric Acid Is Associated with Cerebral White Matter Hyperintensities in Patients with Acute Lacunar Infarction

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The Effect of Cilostazol in Acute Lacunar Infarction Based on Pulsatility Index of Transcranial Doppler (ECLIPse) study showed a significant decrease in transcranial Doppler pulsatility index (PI) with cilostazol treatment after 90 days of acute lacunar infarction. The aim of this analysis was to perform a subgroup analysis of the ECLIPse study to explore the relationship between serum uric acid (UA) and the volume of white matter hyperintensities (WMH) in patients with acute lacunar infarction. METHODS: The ECLIPse was a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study conducted in Korea. For this subgroup analysis, WMH volume was measured for those subjects for whom FLAIR or T2-weighted images were available using semiautomated computerized software. RESULTS: Of the 203 patients in 8 hospitals in the ECLIPse study, 130 in 6 hospitals were entered for this subgroup analysis. The mean age was 64.7 +/- 9.95 years, and 20.8% were women. The mean WMH volume was 11.57 cm(3) (. 13 to 68.45, median 4.86) and mean serum UA was 5.2 mg/dL (1.5 to 8.9). Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that age (P <.001) and serum UA (P =.013) were significantly associated with WMH volume. Age-adjusted scatterplots showed that serum UA level was positively related to WMH volume in patients with acute lacunar infarction (r = 0.275, P =.003). CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that serum UA was associated with cerebral WMH in patients with acute lacunar infarction.