Impact of Libido at 2 Weeks after Stroke on Risk of Stroke Recurrence at 1-Year in a Chinese Stroke Cohort Study

BACKGROUND: There were few studies on the relation between changes in libido and incidence of stroke recurrence. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between libido decrease at 2 weeks after stroke and recurrent stroke at 1-year. METHODS: It is a multi-centered, prospective cohort study. The 14(th) item of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale-17 was used to evaluate changes of libido in poststroke patients at 2 weeks. Stroke recurrence was defined as an aggravation of former neurological functional deficit, new local or overall symptoms, or stroke diagnosed at re-admission. RESULTS: Among 2341 enrolled patients, 1757 patients had completed follow-up data, 533 (30.34%) patients had decreased libido at 2 weeks, and 166 (9.45%) patients had recurrent stroke at 1-year. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that, compared with patients with normal libido, the odds ratio (OR) of recurrent stroke in patients with decreased libido was reduced by 41% (OR = 0.59, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.40–0.87). The correlation was more prominent among male patients (OR = 0.52, 95% CI: 0.31–0.85) and patients of ≥60 years of age (OR = 0.57, 95% CI: 0.35–0.93). CONCLUSIONS: One out of three stroke patients in mainland China has decreased libido at 2 weeks after stroke. Decreased libido is a protective factor for stroke recurrence at 1-year, which is more prominent among older male patients.