Long-term prognosis of patients with lacunar syndromes.

A follow-up study of 107 patients with lacunar syndromes has been performed using the analysis of the survival curves and the recurrence curves for new focal cerebrovascular acute episodes. At the end of the 7th year of follow-up, the survival rate of lacunar patients was 479 per 1000, lower than the survival rate of the normal population matched for sex and age (755 per 1000). A more severe prognosis was observed in subjects over 65 years of age, in patients with pseudobulbar syndrome, hypertension and higher degree of disability. The average recurrence rate for new cerebrovascular episodes was 4.74 per 100 patient-years, much lower than that in survivors from cerebral infarction.