Clinical burden of stroke greater than that of heart attack

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

A study shows that stroke is a more serious problem than previously thought.
It is often assumed that stroke and transient ischemic attack - or 'mini' stroke - are problems that mainly affect older people. Resources devoted to stroke are also much less than those for heart attack, at least in the UK.

Now a team in Oxford, UK, report on vascular - heart and stroke - events in 91,000 individuals in the local area from 2002 to 2005. They find that age of onset of heart attack and stroke are about the same and that half of all the events occur among those aged 75 or more. Thus, stroke is not solely a disease of the elderly.

It is true that stroke is less likely to be fatal. But it is more likely to cause major disability. Therefore, more resources ought to be dedicated to both clinical services and research into stroke.

Source
The Lancet online 15th November 2005

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