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Chicken Pox Risk Factor In Childhood Stroke

Chickenpox is a key risk factor for stroke in young children.

In children with arterial ischemic stroke (AIS) versus healthy children, there is a three-fold increase in preceding varicella infection.

Varicella-linked AIS also accounts for nearly one-third of childhood AIS and characteristically produces a two-fold increase in recurrent AIS and transient ischemic attacks.

Investigation of whether varicella infection is causal in AIS was the objective of these researchers from the Hospital for Sick Children and University of Toronto, Toronto, and the Children's Hospital at Hamilton Health Sciences Centre, Hamilton, both in Ontario, Canada.

Study authors first conducted a prospective cohort study among children aged six month to 10 years with AIS at two institutions.

Presence of varicella infection within the year prior to AIS was compared with published frequency of the infection in the healthy paediatric population. As well, clinical and radiographic features of AIS were compared between the varicella and nonvaricella study groups.

Second, researchers did a literature search of varicella-linked AIS and compared clinical and radiographic features of those children with those in the nonvaricella study group.

In the initial (cohort) study, 22 (31 percent) of 70 consecutive children with AIS had a varicella infection in the preceding year versus nine percent in the healthy population.

Children in the varicella versus nonvaricella cohort were also more likely to have basal ganglia infarcts, abnormal cerebral vascular imaging and recurrent AIS or transient ischemic attacks.

Findings in the literature analysis of 51 cases of chickenpox-linked AIS were similar to those for the varicella group.

Varicella is clearly an important risk factor for AIS in young children, these researchers conclude.
Stroke. 2001;32:1257. "Chickenpox and Stroke in Childhood : A Study of Frequency and Causation"

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