Abstract
Background: Stroke is a serious complication in patients with mechanical heart valves, caused either by thromboembolism or anticoagulation-related hemorrhage. Maintaining the international normalized ratio (INR) within the therapeutic range is crucial but remains challenging in clinical practice.
Objective: To investigate the prevalence of stroke in patients with mechanical heart valves receiving vitamin K antagonists at Thanh Hoa General Hospital.
Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted on 430 patients with mechanical heart valves attending the outpatient clinic or admitted to Thanh Hoa General Hospital over a 22-month period (January 1, 2021 to October 31, 2022). Clinical examination, laboratory testing, and definitive diagnosis of stroke were performed. The prevalence of stroke and its associations with clinical factors were analyzed.
Results: A total of 430 patients were enrolled, mean age 52.43 ± 9.33 years; males accounted for 39.1%. Mitral valve replacement was the most common (235; 54.65%), followed by combined mitral and aortic valve replacement (131; 30.47%) and isolated aortic valve replacement (64; 14.88%). The prevalence of ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, and transient ischemic attack was 4.9%, 2.6%, and 6.0%, respectively. Patients with hemorrhagic stroke had supra-therapeutic INR 1.74 times more frequently than those without hemorrhage (p < 0.05). Sub-therapeutic or supra-therapeutic INR was not significantly associated with ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack (p > 0.05).
Conclusion: The prevalence of ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, and transient ischemic attack among patients with mechanical heart valves was 4.9%, 2.6%, and 6.0%, respectively. Hemorrhagic stroke was significantly associated with supra-therapeutic INR values.
| Published | 2026-06-28 | |
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| Issue | Vol. 16 No. 3 (2026) | |
| Section | Original Articles | |
| DOI | 10.34071/jmp.2026.3.669 | |
| Keywords | đột quỵ não; nhồi máu não; xuất huyết não; van tim cơ học |
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Copyright (c) 2026 Hue Journal of Medicine and Pharmacy
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