ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Neurol.
Sec. Stroke
Post-stroke dizziness in anterior vs posterior circulation ischemic stroke
Sang Hee Ha 1
GAYOUNG PARK 2
Bum Joon Kim 2
Jun Young Chang 2
Dayoung Seo 2
Dong-Wha Kang 2
Sun Kwon 2
Jong S. Kim 3
Eun-Jae LEE 2
1. Gachon University Gil Medical Center, Incheon, Republic of Korea
2. Asan Medical Center, Songpa-gu, Republic of Korea
3. GangNeung Asan Hospital, Gangneung-si, Republic of Korea
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Abstract
ABSTRACT Background: Dizziness in anterior circulation stroke (ACS) has not been well characterized. We aimed to examine the frequency of dizziness and its associated factors in ACS, and to compare these findings with posterior circulation stroke (PCS). Methods: We prospectively enrolled consecutive patients with acute ischemic stroke from July 2021 to July 2022, categorized into ACS and PCS groups. The presence of new-onset dizziness was assessed within 7 days of stroke onset in clinically stable patients, excluding those with severe deficits that precluded survey completion. Clinical variables, depressive symptoms (Beck Depression Inventory), anxiety (State–Trait Anxiety Inventory), and neuroimaging findings were collected. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to identify factors independently associated with dizziness. Results: Among 169 patients (98 ACS, 71 PCS), dizziness was reported in 45.9% of patients with ACS and 60.6% of those with PCS. In the ACS group, the presence of cerebral microbleeds (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 3.19, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.09–9.32, p = 0.034) or a higher number of microbleeds (aOR = 2.38, 95% CI 1.10–5.15, p = 0.026) were independently associated with dizziness. In the PCS group, dizziness was independently associated with medullary or cerebellar lesions (aOR = 3.13, 95% CI 1.01–9.74, p = 0.048). Conclusion: Dizziness was common in patients with ACS, with a frequency comparable to that in PCS. The absence of an association with depressive or anxiety symptoms, together with the link to cerebral microbleeds, suggests that dizziness in ACS may reflect underlying structural or vascular mechanisms, warranting greater clinical attention.
Summary
Keywords
Anterior circulation stroke, Beck depression inventory, Post stroke dizziness, Posterior circulation stroke, Spielberger state-trait anxiety inventory
Received
09 November 2025
Accepted
13 February 2026
Copyright
© 2026 Ha, PARK, Kim, Chang, Seo, Kang, Kwon, Kim and LEE. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: Eun-Jae LEE
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