Stroke; a journal of cerebral circulation
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It remains undetermined whether the use of coumarin anticoagulants associates with cerebral microbleeds in the general population. We investigated whether (1) coumarin use relates to higher prevalence and incidence of microbleeds, (2) microbleeds are more frequent in people with higher maximum international normalized ratios (INRs), and (3) among coumarin users, variability in INR associates with microbleed presence. ⋯ Coumarin use is associated with microbleeds. Associations were strongest for people with greater variability in INR.
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Characterizing International Classification of Disease 9th Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) code validity is essential given widespread use of hospital discharge databases in research. Using the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study, we estimated the accuracy of ICD-9-CM stroke codes. ⋯ A new AHA/ASA discharge code grouping to identify stroke had similar PPV and lower sensitivity compared with an alternative code grouping. Accuracy varied by patient characteristics and study sites.