Elevated Visfatin/Pre-B-cell Colony-enhancing Factor Plasma Concentration in Ischemic Stroke

Background: Visfatin/pre-B-cell colony-enhancing factor is a cytokine that is expressed as a protein in several tissues (e.g., liver, skeletal muscle, immune cells), including adipose tissue, and is reported to stimulate inflammatory cytokine expressions and promote vascular smooth cell maturation. Visfatin may act as a proinflammatory cytokine and be involved in the process of atherosclerosis. In this study, we investigated whether plasma visfatin levels were altered in patients with ischemic stroke. Methods: Plasma visfatin concentrations were measured through enzyme immunoassays in patients with ischemic stroke and in control subjects without stroke. Results: The mean plasma concentration of visfatin in the 120 patients with ischemic stroke was significantly higher than that of the 120 control subjects without stroke (51.5 +/- 48.4 v 23.0 +/- 23.9 ng/mL, P < .001). Multiple logistic regression analysis confirmed plasma visfatin to be an independent factor associated with ischemic stroke. Increasing concentrations of visfatin were independently and significantly associated with a higher risk of ischemic stroke when concentrations were analyzed as both a quartile and a continuous variable. The multiple logistic regression analysis-adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals for ischemic stroke in the second, third, and fourth quartiles were 2.3 (0.7-7.7), 6.9 (2.2-23.3), and 20.1 (4.9-97.7), respectively. Plasma visfatin concentration was positively associated with high-sensitivity C-reactive protein levels and negatively associated with low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Conclusions: Our results indicate that higher visfatin levels are associated with ischemic stroke in the Chinese population.