A Meta-analysis of the Impact of COVID-19 on Stroke Mortality

Background The COVID-19 pandemic seriously affects human health and life. COVID-19 has been reportedly associated with a high risk of thrombotic events, which are closely associated with stroke. Objective To assess the effect and possible mechanism of COVID-19 on stroke morbidity, providing a reliable theoretical basis for scientific prevention and treatment of COVID-19 in stroke. Methods We searched databases of Web of Science, PubMed, EmBase, Cochrane Library, CNKI and Wanfang Data for cohort studies and case-control studies related to COVID-19 and stroke published from December 2019 to January 2022. Two researchers conducted literature screening and data extraction separately. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale was used to assess the quality of included studies. Meta-analysis was used to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on stroke mortality. Funnel plot was used to evaluate the potential publication bias. Results A total of 18 studies were included, 12 of them were of good quality, and other 6 were of fair quality.