There was no correlation between age and CSF GAP-43 concentration in stroke or control groups (rs (day 0–4) = 0.43, p = 0.13; control: rs = − 0.23, p = 0.34) and no differences between gender (stroke (day 0–4): p = 0.78; control: p = 0.45). Here, GAP43 is linked to Stroke.