Gingko Biloba Extract Found Effective in Acute Ischemic Stroke

For acute ischemic stroke, Ginkgo biloba extract (GBE) in combination with aspirin alleviates cognitive and neurological deficits, according to a study published in Stroke and Vascular Neurology.

Shanshan Li, from the Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School in China, and colleagues enrolled patients with onset of acute ischemic stroke within seven days and assigned them to the GBE group (450 mg GBE with 100 mg aspirin daily; 179 patients) or the control group (100 mg aspirin daily; 169 patients) for six months.

The researchers found that, compared with controls, patients in the GBE group had a marked deceleration in the decline in Montreal Cognitive Assessment scores at 30 days (−2.77±0.21 vs −1.99±0.23; P = 0.0116), 90 days (−3.34±0.24 vs −2.48±0.26; P = 0.0165), and 180 days (−4±0.26 vs −2.71±0.26; P = 0.0004). Compared with controls, the GBE group also had significant improvements in the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale scores, the modified Rankin Scale scores for independent rate, and the Barthel Index scores; improvements were also seen in the Mini-Mental State Examination scores, Webster's digit symbol test scores, and Executive Dysfunction Index scores. The incidence of adverse events or vascular events did not differ between the groups.

"GBE in combination with aspirin treatment alleviated cognitive and neurological deficits after acute ischemic stroke without increasing the incidence of vascular events," the authors wrote.

Source: HealthDay