Long-Term Neurologic Outcomes in Pediatric Arterial Ischemic Stroke: The Impact of Age and Lesion Location

The impact of age-at-stroke on outcome following pediatric arterial ischemic stroke remains controversial. We studied the interaction of age-at-stroke and infarct location and extent with long-term neurological outcomes. We conducted a longitudinal prospective outcome study of children with acute pediatric arterial ischemic stroke diagnosed from 1996 to 2016 at the Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada. Pediatric Stroke Outcome Measure scores were dichotomized as normal or abnormal (ie, mild, moderate, or severe). Outcomes were analyzed by age-at-stroke (newborn: birth to 28 days; early childhood: 29 days to 5 years; middle/late childhood: >5-18 years), and infarct location, based on each of the following: model 1: circulation (anterior/posterior); model 2: cortical versus subcortical involvement; and model 3: specific arterial territory, including infarct extent (small [