Baseline characteristics (FAS)
| Characteristics | Control | Low-dose | Medium-dose | High-dose | P value |
| n | 94 | 97 | 98 | 96 | |
| Age (years) | 59.71±8.33 | 58.13±8.46 | 59.11±8.95 | 59.55±9.53 | 0.6020 |
| ≤65, n (%) | 67 (71.28) | 75 (77.32) | 75 (76.53) | 68 (70.83) | 0.6264 |
| >65, n (%) | 29 (28.72) | 22 (22.68) | 23 (23.47) | 28 (29.17) | |
| Gender, n (%) | |||||
| Male | 65 (69.15) | 67 (69.07) | 65 (66.33) | 64 (66.67) | 0.9606 |
| Female | 29 (30.85) | 30 (30.93) | 33 (33.67) | 32 (33.33) | |
| Weight (kg) | |||||
| Male | 71.95±10.33 | 72.13±10.25 | 74.45±9.77 | 72.80±10.51 | 0.4892 |
| Female | 62.50±7.99 | 64.53±9.82 | 61.48±11.81 | 60.69±9.36 | 0.4591 |
| Height (cm) | |||||
| Male | 169.70±5.10 | 170.33±5.42 | 171.00±5.24 | 170.94±4.28 | 0.4246 |
| Female | 158.69±3.70 | 159.60±4.75 | 158.79±4.46 | 158.09±5.21 | 0.6397 |
| BMI (kg/m2) | |||||
| Male | 25.00±3.22 | 24.82±3.15 | 25.44±3.02 | 24.88±3.18 | 0.6763 |
| Female | 24.81±3.07 | 25.31±3.56 | 24.38±4.73 | 24.22±3.12 | 0.6578 |
| Temperature (°C) | 36.48±0.31 | 36.46±0.27 | 36.47±0.32 | 36.50±0.32 | 0.8285 |
| Breath (breaths per minute) | 18.32±1.57 | 18.13±1.74 | 18.34±1.51 | 18.75±5.05 | 0.4913 |
| HR (beats per minute) | 74.82±9.51 | 72.59±10.14 | 75.92±12.46 | 74.22±10.21 | 0.1707 |
| SBP (mm Hg) | 150.91±20.93 | 150.61±24.83 | 148.91±19.18 | 149.46±19.59 | 0.8891 |
| DBP (mm Hg) | 88.53±12.26 | 88.70±13.11 | 88.43±11.75 | 88.55±12.84 | 0.9987 |
| Stroke history, n (%) | 25 (26.60) | 24 (24.74) | 25 (25.51) | 27 (28.13) | 0.9560 |
| Family stroke history, n (%) | 9 (9.57) | 7 (7.22) | 14 (14.29) | 11 (11.46) | 0.6241 |
| Hypertension, n (%) | 57 (60.64) | 64 (65.98) | 78 (79.59) | 65 (67.71) | 0.0315 |
| Hyperlipidaemia, n (%) | 4 (4.26) | 11 (11.34) | 11 (11.22) | 8 (8.33) | 0.4435 |
| Diabetes, n (%) | 21 (22.34) | 26 (26.80) | 28 (28.57) | 24 (25.00) | 0.7887 |
| Cardiac disease, n (%) | 16 (17.02) | 14 (14.43) | 19 (19.39) | 19 (19.79) | 0.7315 |
| Smoking, n (%) | 43 (45.74) | 47 (48.45) | 44 (44.90) | 41 (42.71) | 0.8842 |
| Heavy alcohol consumption, n (%) | 6 (6.38) | 10 (10.31) | 8 (8.16) | 7 (7.29) | 0.7981 |
| Obesity, n (%) | 42 (45.16) | 45 (46.39) | 47 (47.96) | 42 (43.75) | 0.9449 |
| Other comorbidities, n (%) | 86 (91.49) | 92 (93.81) | 95 (96.94) | 90 (93.75) | 0.4396 |
| NIHSS score at baseline | 7.01±3.41 | 7.23±3.12 | 6.99±3.31 | 6.75±2.85 | 0.6723 |
| mRS before onset, n (%) | |||||
| 0 | 81 (86.17) | 87 (89.69) | 91 (92.86) | 86 (89.58) | 0.5135 |
| 1 | 13 (13.83) | 10 (10.31) | 7 (7.14) | 10 (10.42) | |
| Time since stroke onset (hours) | 27.57±11.75 | 29.08±12.16 | 27.50±12.11 | 28.05±12.37 | 0.7595 |
BMI, body mass index; DBP, diastolic blood pressure; HR, heart rhythm; mRS, modified Rankin Scale; NIHSS, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale; SBP, systolic blood pressure.