Decreased Serum Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor May Indicate the Development of Poststroke Depression in Patients with Acute Ischemic Stroke: A Meta-Analysis

Background Depression is a common complication after stroke and has been associated with poor outcome. Thus, it is of great importance to identify potential biomarkers that can aid in predicting and detecting patients with stroke at high risk of poststroke depression (PSD) development. Previous studies showed that brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) had potential use as a biomarker for discriminating patients with stroke at high risk of PSD. However, the results were inconsistent. Methods A meta-analysis was performed to evaluate the correlation between the peripheral BDNF levels and the development of PSD in the acute stage of stroke. Results Data were obtained from 4 studies including 499 patients with stroke. Among them, 171 patients were diagnosed with PSD at follow-ups. Our results showed that patients with stroke who were predisposed to developing PSD had significantly lower serum BDNF concentrations at the early stage of stroke. Conclusions This study suggests a potential association between circulating BDNF concentrations at admission and subsequent PSD development, and provides additional support for the involvement of BDNF in the PSD development.