BACKGROUND: Stroke and anemia are major public health concerns in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, few data are available on anemia and acute ischemic stroke in our setting. PURPOSE: To assess the impact of anemia on the outcome of patients with ischemic stroke. METHODS: We collected retrospectively data of patients >
15 years hospitalized for ischemic stroke at the Douala General Hospital over a period of 9 years, in whom full blood count was done. Anemia was classified as mild, moderate and severe. Multivariate analysis was used to determine predictive factors of poor outcome at 3 months (mortality and poor functional recovery) in ischemic stroke patients with anemia. RESULTS: A total of 691 patients (male, 53.3 %) male were included. Anemia was found in 44.4 % of cases (severe anemia, 10.4 %). Severe anemia was significantly associated with poor functional recovery at 3 months (OR:4.43, 95 %CI:1.02-12.24, CONCLUSION: Anemia is common in ischemic stroke cases and must be systematically screened.