Delirium in the acute phase after stroke and the role of the apolipoprotein E gene.

Objective To study the association between the epsilon 4 allele of apolipoprotein E (APOEe4) and delirium in a stroke population. Methods 527 consecutive stroke patients were screened for delirium during the first week of admission with the confusion assessment method. In three hundred fifty-three patients genomic DNA isolation was available. Results The incidence of delirium after stroke in the 353 patients was 11.3%. There was no association between APOEe4 and delirium. Even after adjustment for IQCODE, stroke localization, stroke subtype, stroke severity, infection, and brain atrophy no association was found (odds ratio: 0.9; 95% confidence interval: 0.4–2.1). Delirium did not last longer in patients with an APOEe4 allele compared to patients without an APOEe4 allele (median: 5.6 days [range: 1-21] versus median: 4.6 days [range: 1-15], p = 0.5). Conclusion There was no association between the presence of an APOEe4 allele and the occurrence of delirium in the acute phase after stroke.