Aneurismal subarachnoid hemorrhage in a Chilean population, with emphasis on risk factors

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Subarachnoid Hemorrhage (SAH) is caused principally by the rupture of intracranial aneurisms. Important risk factors have been described such as age, sex, hypertension (HT) and season of the year, among others. The objective is to investigate the demographic characteristics and possible risk factors in a population of Chilean patients.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This retrospective study was based on the analysis of 244 clinical records of patients diagnosed with aneurismal SAH who were discharged from the Instituto de Neurocirugía ASENJO in Santiago, Chile.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The mean age of patients was 49.85 years and the male:female ratio was 1:2.7. The signs and symptoms were not different between sexes; cephalea (85.7%) was predominant, followed by loss of consciousness, vomiting/nausea and meningeal signs. Risk factors included sex, age and HT. Concordant with other reports, the incidence of SAH was greatest in spring.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The demographic characteristics and risk factors observed in patients with aneurismal SAH treated in ASENJO were comparable to those of other populations. We were not able to conclude that tobacco and alcohol consumption were risk factors for this population.</p

Frequency and clinical patterns of stroke in Iran - Systematic and critical review

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cerebrovascular disease is the second commonest cause of death, and over a third of stroke deaths occur in developing countries. To fulfil the current gap on data, this systematic review is focused on the frequency of stroke, risk factors, stroke types and mortality in Iran.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Thirteen relevant articles were identified by keyword searching of PubMed, Iranmedex, Iranian University index Libraries and the official national data on burden of diseases.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The publication dates ranged from 1990 to 2008. The annual stroke incidence of various ages ranged from 23 to 103 per 100,000 population. This is comparable to the figures from Arab Countries, higher than sub-Saharan Africa, but lower than developed countries, India, the Caribbean, Latin America, and China. Similarly to other countries, ischaemic stroke was the commonest subtype. Likewise, the most common related risk factor is hypertension in adults, but cardiac causes in young stroke. The 28-day case fatality rate is reported at 19-31%.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Data on the epidemiology of stroke, its pattern and risk factors from Iran is scarce, but the available data highlights relatively low incidence of stroke. This may reflect a similarity towards the neighbouring nations, and a contrast with the West.</p