Evaluation of a bidirectional causal association between cardiovascular diseases and pneumonia: a Mendelian randomization study

Ischaemic stroke is causally associated with an increased risk of pneumonia, but there is no evidence for the causal effect of pneumonia on CVDs. Our findings have important implications, as they provide further support for thrombosis risk screening as a strategy to reduce the incidence of pneumonia in patients with ischaemic stroke.