Abstract: Objective · To investigate the relationship between serum level of caveolin-1 (Cav-1) and early neurological deterioration (END) in patients with acute cerebral infarction.  Methods · A total of 126 consecutive patients with acute cerebral infarction were recruited from July 2016 to January 2017 in Department of Neurology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University. The serum Cav-1 levels of all patients were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test. The neurological deficits were assessed by the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) and the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) at the same time. Compared with the admission baseline NIHSS score, if second motor NIHSS score increased ≥ 1 point or the total NIHSS score increased ≥ 2 points within 3 days after hospitalization, they were classified as END group, otherwise they were classified as non-END group. Multivariable Logistic regression analysis was used to examine the independent predictors of END in the patients. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were obtained to explore Cav-1 levels in predicting END.  Results · Serum Cav-1 levels in END group were significantly higher than those in non-END group [(29.88±19.57) ng/mL vs (16.08±13.37) ng/mL, P=0.000]. Based on the ROC curves, the best cut-off point of serum Cav-1 for predicting END was 16.55 ng/mL. The sensitivity and specificity were 73.33% and 74.07%, respectively. Multivariable Logistic regression analysis showed that Cav-1 ≥ 16.55 ng/mL remained an independent predictor of END (OR=4.936, 95%CI 1.608-15.155, P=0.005).  Conclusion · Serum Cav-1 is an independent predictor of END in patients with acute cerebral infarction.

Key words: acute cerebral infarction, caveolin-1, predictor, early neurological deterioration