Prevalence of poststroke anxiety and its associations with global cognitive impairment: An individual participant data analysis
Open accessAbstract
Background and purpose Anxiety is frequent after stroke; however, little is known about its determinants. This study aims to assess the prevalence and correlates of post stroke anxiety (PSA) within 3-6 months following ischemic stroke. Methods Three cohort studies from the STROKOG consortium were involved. Demographic and clinical data were standardized. PSA and PSD were assessed using inventories. The criteria for post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) were at least one cognitive domain impaired if applicable, or a Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score. Descriptive analyses were conducted to ascertain the prevalence of anxiety. Comparisons between anxious and non-anxious patients in the total sample were made using χ 2 and t-tests. A two-step individual participant data (IPD) meta-analysis was employed to identify factors associated with PSA. Results 584 patients were included. The total prevalence of PSA was 35 % (95%CI = [31.23;38.97]) and ranged from 27 % to 45 % across cohorts. In the total sample, there was a higher proportion of females in the anxiety group than the non-anxiety group (χ 2 = 19.62; p 2 = 6.59; p = 0.03), higher stroke severity (t = 2.77; p = 0.002), and higher rates of PSD (χ 2 = 118.09; p 2 = 23.81, p Conclusions Anxiety is frequent after stroke, especially in females, and is associated with depression and cognitive impairment.
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35% of patients have post-stroke anxiety.
“Anxiety is a common complication in post-stroke patients, and some studies have shown that 35% of patients have poststroke anxiety (Ruthmann et al. 2025).”
From The Relationship Between Knowledge, Psychological Flexibility, Anxiety and Healthy Behaviour in Stroke Patients: A Chain Mediation Model. (2026) · cites this paper as Ruthmann et al. 2025
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- Authors
- Ruthmann, F., Lo, J. W., Mendyk-Bordet, A.-M., Allart, E., Köhler, S., Klimkowicz-Mrowiec, A., Staals, J., Sachdev, P. S., Bordet, R., & Dondaine, T.
- Affiliations
- Inserm (FR)
- UNSW Sydney (AU)
- Maastricht University (NL)
- Maastricht University Medical Centre (NL)
- Corresponding author
- Dondaine, Thibaut
- ORCID
- Venue
- Journal of Affective Disorders
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2025-01
- Volume
- 369
- Pages
- 1136-1144
- ISSN
- 0165-0327 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W4403633279
- Cited by
- 23
- References
- 32
- Citations by year
- 2026: 13 · 2025: 10
- FWCI
- 3.63
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Journal of Affective Disorders (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Homo Politicus (Academy of Humanities and Economics in Lodz) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- HAL (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Research Publications (Maastricht University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- LillOA (Université de Lille (University Of Lille)) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Conseil Régional Hauts-de-France
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Rehabilitation › Stroke Rehabilitation and Recovery
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Cardiac Health and Mental Health
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Keywords
- post-stroke anxiety, post-stroke depression, post-stroke cognitive impairment, ischemic stroke, prevalence, risk factors, sex differences, stroke severity, educational attainment, Montreal Cognitive Assessment
- MeSH terms
- Ischemic Stroke, Aged, Anxiety, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Cohort Studies, Prevalence, Stroke, Cognitive Dysfunction
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