Neuron specific enolase and c-reactive protein levels in stroke and its subtypes: correlation with degree of disability.

Stroke is an emergency which threatens life and third leading cause of death and long term disability in developed countries. The use of biomarkers in diagnosing stroke and assessing prognosis is an emerging and rapidly evolving field. The study aimed to investigate the predictive value of biochemical marker of brain damage neuron-specific enolase (NSE) and systemic inflammatory marker C-reactive protein (CRP) with respect to degree of disability at the time of admission and short term in stroke patients. We investigated 120 patients with cerebrovascular stroke who were admitted within 72 h of onset of stroke in the Department of Neurology at Sri Aurobindo Institute of Medical Sciences, Indore, India. NSE and CRP were analyzed by solid enzyme linked immunosorbent assay using analyzer and micro plate reader from Biorad 680. In all patients, the neurological status was evaluated by a standardized neurological examination and the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale on admission and on day 7. Serum NSE and CRP concentration were found significantly increased in acute stroke cases as compared to control in present study (<0.05 and <0.001 respectively). The maximum serum NSE and CRP levels within 72 h of admission were significantly higher in patients with greater degree of disability at the time of admission. Both biomarkers were found significantly correlated with neurological disability and short term outcome. Our study showed that serum biomarkers NSE and CRP have high predictive value for determining severity and early neurobehavioral outcome after acute stroke.