Association Between the Subtypes of Stroke and the Various Risk Factors of Cerebrovascular Accidents: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Objective: Stroke is a common heterogeneous disease classified into two subtypes: ischemic and hemorrhagic. Many risk factors have been associated with stroke, and the most well-known is hypertension. Although the relation between stroke and these risk factors has been emphasized before, there is inconclusive evidence about the relation between the different risk factors and the subtypes of stroke. The present study aims to fill this gap.

Materials And Methods: In the present retrospective, cross-sectional study, 827 patients with diagnosed stroke were included. Demographic data and the acquired risk factors were determined using pre-designed questionnaires. Statistical analysis was conducted using chi-square test, Student t-test, and Pearson correlation coefficient.

Results: Among the included 827 patients, 432 (52.2%) were men and 395 (47.8%) were women. The mean±standard deviation of age was 68.41±12.46 y in men and 67.89±11.85 y in women, respectively, and the difference was not significant. Of all the patients, 672 had ischemic strokes and 155 had hemorrhagic strokes. The most common risk factor in the patients was hypertension with a prevalence of 66.7%. Of all the risk factors, only hypertension, atrial fibrillation (AF), age, and a positive family history were significantly related to a subtype of stroke.

Conclusion: Knowing that the prevalence of hypertension, AF, age, and positive family history are significantly different between the two subtypes, the patients having these risk factors can be entered into more specified public health measures, which puts more emphasis on the subtype that they are more prone to.