Stroke is the second leading cause of hospital admissions in adults. An ischemic stroke (a type of stroke caused by an obstruction within a blood vessel supplying blood to the brain) makes up 87% of all strokes.

Researchers examined 91,134 Medicare beneficiaries treated at 625 hospitals from April 2003 to December 2006. Here are the results of that study:

• In-hospital death rates for ischemic stroke was 15% within 30 days of admission and more than 30% within a year of admission
• 61% of ischemic patients died or rehospitalized after first discharge
• No improvements were made in the death or readmission rates for Medicare beneficiaries with acute stroke occurred from 2003 to 2006

To address these problems found in the study, a new standard needs to be created and followed. A quality improvement in the system of care is needed, especially in the area of early, intermediate, and long-term outcomes of stroke patients.

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Heart disease and stroke still remain the leading cause of death in America. Combined, they account for one in every three deaths every year. What researchers want to do is to track the risk factors of these diseases instead of tracking the diseases themselves.

The heart disease and stroke risk factors are the following:

• 33.5% of adults 20 years and older in America have high blood pressure, 80% are aware if their condition, but less than half have it under control
• 23.1% of men and 18.1% of women smoke and 19.5% of students grade 9 to 12 smoke
• 15% of adults 20 and older have a total cholesterol levels 240 mg/dL or higher
• More than 67% of adults are overweight
• Childhood obesity in children aged 6 to 11 is more than 20%

However, what seems to play one of the biggest roles is genetics. A clear and concise family history is the key to track heart disease and stroke risk factors.

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Smoking rates surprisingly increased with greater educated level among women from higher income countries to middle income countries to lower income countries. These higher educated women also had tiny increase incident rate of fatal and nonfatal heart attack and stroke.

Low and middle income countries have not achieved a balanced level of industrialization relative to their population which means a low to medium standard of living in these nations. This means studies done high income nations cannot be applied to low and middle income nations as the socioeconomic situations vastly differ. However, smoking continues to be one of the main factors of heart disease.

Smoking is one of the major causes of heart disease and stroke. Usually, the rate of smoking decreases as formal education increases. However, researchers found educated women from low and middle income nations smoked more than the less educated women from the same nations. The cause is a mystery as more and more developing nations are suffering from a seemingly cardiovascular disease outbreak. What researchers are calling for is more thorough studies to be done within these nations to help figure out the cause. Only then can they get to the source of this plague.

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People who were least agreeable and most antagonistic were 40% more likely to have artery wall thickening. The findings even go as far to suggest personality screening when testing for heart disease, the number one cause of death in America.

The NIA studied 5,614 from the village of Sardinia, Italy. The median age was 42 and 58% of participants were women. Researchers used ultrasound imaging to measure carotid artery and arterial wall thickness at five points. The researchers also screened the villagers for other cardiovascular disease risk factors like smoking and high blood pressure.

What the researchers found was that antagonistic people, regardless of age, had a thickening of the artery walls way above the expected norm based on normal risk factors alone. Though there were slight differences based on gender, both men and women with antagonistic personalities had much thicker artery walls compared to more easy-going people. Read more about the study at WebMD.

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According to a study recently published from Australia, Vitamin B may not actually reduce the risk at all. “B vitamins are safe, but they were not, statistically, significantly more effective than placebo in preventing major vascular events among stroke and TIA [transient ischemic attack] patients,” said lead researcher Dr. Graeme J. Hankey, head of the stroke unit at Royal Perth Hospital in Western Australia. “B vitamins have not been proven to have a role in secondary stroke prevention.”

The study found that B vitamins did reduce the amount of the patient’s homocysteine levels, but did not prove to lower the patient’s risk for a second stroke or heart attack.

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Fine particle matter is created by being suspended in the air as the result of various human activities like burning fossil fuels. These particles have been shown to have adverse effects on people.

An AHA expert panel reviewed epidemiological, molecular, and toxicological studies published during the past six years. The study found several links between air pollution and cardiovascular disease, such as:

• A few hours of week of exposure to fine particle matter can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease like heart attack or stroke. Vulnerable populations (people who already have high cardiovascular disease risk like the elderly) are particularly at risk.
• Long-term exposure to air pollution can further increase the risk and shorten lifespan by several months to a few years.
• There is a strong risk between air pollution exposure to ischemic heart disease
• There is a ‘modest’ link between air pollution and ischemic heart failure and ischemic stroke
• There is a ‘modest’ connection between air pollution and peripheral vascular disease, irregular heartbeats, and cardiac arrest.

Many organizations are taking steps to educate the world about the dangers of air pollution. The American Heart Association and the Environmental Protection Agency are working together to bring this issue to Capitol Hill. This is a fine demonstration on how dangerous air pollution really is.

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A survey reveals public awareness is not only low, but also varies vastly depending on location.

• 41 percent in the Northeast are more likely to know if hospitals in their areas specialize in stroke care.
• 36 percent in the Midwest are more likely to know if hospitals in their areas specialize in stroke care.
• 30 percent in the South are more likely to know if hospitals in their areas specialize in stroke care.
• 26 percent in the West are more likely to know if hospitals in their areas specialize in stroke care.

Regardless of these statistics, the number of stroke-certified hospitals almost doubled since 2006.The Joint Commission has been pushing more hospitals to become certified in stroke treatment. Currently, there are more than 640 stroke centers in 49 states including the District of Columbia, not to mention other different stroke treatment certification through other agencies.

Then the American Heart Association has been offering their Get With The Guidelines-Stroke program, a hospital-basted quality improvement program. Yet, all of this effort will be in vain if no one even knows these services are available.

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• Paralysis of the arms or legs, tingling, numbness, confusion, dizziness, double vision, slurred speech, trouble finding words, or weakness, especially on one side of the face or body.
  • This could be signs of a stroke.
  • Arteries that bring oxygen to the brain become blocked or even ruptured which leads to the death of brain tissue.
  • Symptoms vary depending on which vessel is blocked or ruptured. If a large vessel is compromised, then an entire side of the body may suffer symptoms. Though if a small vessel is blocked then a smaller region of the body may be affected, like an arm or a leg.

• Chest pain or discomfort; pain in the arm, jaw, or neck; breaking out in a cold sweat; extreme weakness; nausea; vomiting; feeling faint; or being short of breath.
  • A heart attack may be imminent.
  • Chewing a full-strength aspirin during an attack may prevent heart damage

Plenty of other symptoms may lead to some serious complications. So never delay medical help. As soon as symptoms appear, get immediate medical help.

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A major study was conducted with 5,422 people 40 years old and over with no history of smoking. Participants were diagnosed with sleep apnea via standard at-home sleep test. The participants were followed for 9 years. During that time, 85 out of 2,642 men and 108 out of 2960 women suffered from strokes.

The increase of stroke even exists without other factors like weight, high blood pressure, race, diabetes, and smoking. Men naturally have a greater risk because they develop sleep apnea at younger ages and so go untreated for a longer amount of time.

Sleep apnea is also linked to other health problems like heart disease and diabetes. Many experts say sleep apnea is under-recognized by physicians and that is why so many troubles arise. Hopefully, this new research will lead to larger awareness of the dangers of sleep apnea.

Click here for more information about sleep apnea.

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Recent news has shown that normal doses of Plavix have a potentially deadly lack of effect in 2% to 14% of patients. These patients are known as “poor metabolizers” who carry a variant CYP2C19 gene affecting the enzyme that converts Plavix into its active form.

The first warning about the effect on poor metabolizers appeared on Plavix labels in May 2009. But with recent findings from a drug maker-funded study and other research, the FDA has now strengthened the warning.

A person can identify if they are a poor metabolizer with a genetic test. These tests cost about $500, but the cost isn’t the only issue. The time to get the test results varies. It may be a few hours to a day or two, or other labs can take up to a few weeks; and for many patients at risk of a second heart attack or stroke, time is of the essence.

Click here for more heart attack information.

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