Lower and higher hemoglobin concentrations were associated with a higher risk of incident stroke in women, according to a recent study. Researchers examined the association of baseline hemoglobin concentrations with incident stroke in the Reasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) study, a cohort of black and white adults aged ≥45 years. They found:

• A total of 518 participants developed stroke over a mean 7±2 years of follow-up.

• There was a statistically significant interaction between hemoglobin and sex on the risk of incident stroke.

• In Cox regression models adjusted for demographic and clinical variables, there was no association of baseline hemoglobin concentration with incident stroke in men, whereas in women, the lowest and highest quartiles of hemoglobin were associated with higher risk of stroke when compared with the second quartile.

Citation: Panwar B, Judd SE, Warnock DG, McClellan WM, et al. Hemoglobin concentration and risk of incident stroke in community-living adults. [Published online ahead of print July 5, 2016]. Stroke. doi:10.1161.STROKEAHA.116.013077.