A NADE nomogram to predict the probability of 6-month unfavorable outcome in Chinese patients with ischemic stroke

Background: Early prediction of unfavorable outcome after ischemic stroke is of great significance to the clinical and therapeutic management. A nomogram is a better visual tool than earlier models and prognostic scores to predict clinical outcomes, which incorporates different factors to develop a graphic continuous scoring system and calculates accurately the risk probability of poor outcome entirely based on individual characteristics. However, to date, no nomogram models have been found to predict the probability of 6-month poor outcome after ischemic stroke. We aimed to develop and validate a nomogram for individualized prediction of the probability of 6-month unfavorable outcome in Chinese patients with ischemic stroke.

Methods: Based on the retrospective stroke registry, a single-center study which included 499 patients from May, 2013 to May, 2018 was conducted in Nanjing First Hospital (China) for ischemic stroke within 12 h of symptoms onset. The main outcome measure was 6-month unfavorable outcome (mRS > 2). To generate the nomogram, NIHSS score on admission, Age, previous Diabetes mellitus and crEatinine (NADE) were integrated into the model. We assessed the discriminative performance by using the area under the curve (AUC) of receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) and calibration of risk prediction model by using the Hosmer-Lemeshow test.

Results: A visual NADE nomogram was constructed that NIHSS score on admission (OR: 1.190, 95%CI: 1.125-1.258), age (OR: 1.068, 95%CI: 1.045-1.090), previous diabetes mellitus (OR: 1.995, 95%CI: 1.236-3.221) and creatinine (OR: 1.010, 95%CI: 1.002-1.018) were found to be significant predictors of 6-month unfavorable outcome after acute ischemic stroke in Chinese patients. The AUC-ROC of nomogram was 0.791. Calibration was good (p = 0.4982 for the Hosmer-Lemeshow test).

Conclusion: The NADE is the first nomogram developed and validated in Chinese ischemic stroke patients to provide an individual, visual and precise prediction of the risk probability of 6-month unfavorable outcome.