Homocysteine--risk factor for ischemic stroke?

The present study was undertaken to compare the homocysteine levels in patients of ischemic stroke with controls. Our study included 117 patients of ischemic stroke and 101 controls. The mean homocysteine levels in patients with ischemic stroke were 16.80 +/- 6.71 micromol/L while in controls it was 12.30 +/- 4.68 micromol/L, the difference being statistically significant (P < 0.01). The increased homocysteine levels in patients with ischemic stroke are independent of diabetes mellitus, age and sex. The homocysteine levels were higher in hypertensive subjects than non-hypertensive (P < 0.05).