In a study of more than 94,000 people in Oxfordshire in the United Kingdom, researchers funded by the Medical Research Foundation found a sharp increase in strokes in younger adults.
Strokes are serious health problems that can have devastating effects. When blood supply to the brain is cut off, brain cells die and parts of the brain become dysfunctional. Blood can be restricted to the brain when an artery supplying blood to the brain becomes blocked, a blood vessel ruptures causing a bleed inside the brain, or the blood supply to the brain is temporarily reduced.
In high-income countries, young stroke is an emerging problem, according to this new study that analyzes the rate of new stroke cases over the past 20 years in Oxfordshire. Recent studies have begun to contradict the traditional belief that vascular risk factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity play a minor role in young strokes.
With the support of the Foundation, Dr Linxin Li from the University of Oxford is investigating the role of these treatable risk factors in young strokes.
Li’s research focuses on ischemic strokes, which are caused by blocked arteries, ‘mini-strokes’ (transient ischemic attacks), and bleeding in the brain (intracerebral hemorrhage and subarachnoid hemorrhage).
JAMA published a study led by researchers at the University of Oxford’s Nuffield Department of Clinical Neuroscience.
Data from the Oxford Vascular Study, which consists of 94,567 people registered with GP practices across Oxfordshire, was used to examine whether stroke incidence in younger and older people changed between 2002 and 2018.
In comparison to other diseases or health-related events, stroke occurs more frequently.
Besides lifestyle, diagnostic practices, traditional vascular risk factors, and strokes caused by men or women, other factors were also considered.
According to the study, stroke incidence increased by 67% among younger adults (under 55 years old) between 2002-2010 and 2010-2018, but decreased by 15% among older adults (55 years or older). Heart attacks and other vascular events did not show a similar divergence in incidence.
