Aphasia and swallowing problems in subjects with incident stroke in rural northern Tanzania: a case-control study.

Objectives: This study was carried out to quantify the degree of cognitive impairment and the extent of speech, language, and swallowing problems in a representative cohort of Swahili-speaking people with stroke in Tanzania.

Methods: A case-control design was used, comparing people with and without stroke on a screening test for aphasia (spoken comprehension and expression), a water swallow test, and the Community Screening Instrument for Dementia (CSI-D).

Results: Fifty-eight persons between 6 and 60 months (median 36) post stroke and 58 age- and gender-matched control subjects were assessed.

A cross-sectional study of quality of life in incident stroke survivors in rural northern Tanzania.

The aim of this study was to evaluate changes to, and predictors of, quality of life (QOL) in a community-based cohort of stroke survivors from an earlier stroke incidence study in rural northern Tanzania. Patients were assessed 1-5 years after their incident stroke. The study cohort was compared with an age- and sex-matched control group from the same rural district within a cross-sectional design.