The Factors Influencing the Clinical Course of Acute Cerebral Infarctions: Cortical Versus Lacunar Infarction

ABSTRACT

We think that the clinical courses of lacurlar infarctions are somewhat different from those of cortical ones, because the ischemic penumbra, a keystone of acute infarct recovery, of the former is rnore limitted than that of the latter. Therefore, we analyzed the selected data, 38 cortical and 33 lacunar infarct patients, from Severance Stroke Registry which were recorded from May, 1989 to April, 1990, to demonstrate and compare the differences of the clinical courses and its influencing factors between the cortical and lacunar infarcts. Our results suggested as follows first, the initial neurologic deficits of cortical infarctions are rnore serious than those of lacunar infarctions, but with the better short-term improvements of tbe former, the short-term motor outcome between the two types of infarcts are not significantly different second, whiIe the short-term improvernent of cortical infarcs is influenced by initial hematocrit level, the short-term motor outcome and the degree of improvement of lacunar infarcts are influenced by the patient's age.