Alkaline phosphatase and mortality in stroke patients: a systematic review

Increased plasma levels of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) have been associated to a worse prognosis in several types of diseases. In the present review, the authors aimed to study the relationship between plasma levels of ALP and overall mortality in patients with stroke. A systematic review was carried out, searching two databases: Web of Science and Medline/PubMed. A total of nine studies that included data on overall mortality in stroke patients were selected. The selected studies were published between 2010 and 2022 and were predominantly from Asia. The articles reviewed quantified ALP levels through different methods: highest versus lowest quintiles of plasma ALP (three reports); highest versus lowest quartiles of plasma ALP (four reports); and plasma ALP levels in deceased versus in surviving patients (two reports). All selected studies showed an increased mortality associated to elevated ALP levels, irrespective of stroke type and length of follow-up, from a mean of 10 days to 2.5 years. The studies comparing the highest to the lowest ALP quintiles showed an aggregate value of 1.8 times greater risk of mortality for the former, when compared to the latter. Whereas, the studies comparing the highest to the lowest ALP quartiles showed an aggregate value of 2.4 times greater risk of mortality for the former, when compared to the latter. Elevated ALP levels are associated with increased mortality in stroke patients and provide cost effective prognostic indicators of mortality in stroke.