Healthsifter by mary desmond pinkowish, since 2003

Nine Things Cause 90% of Strokes--And You Control Most of Them

Stroke takes a terrible, terrible toll.  It's the third leading cause of death in the US behind heart disease and cancer. People who are lucky enough to survive have a long road to recovery. But here's the thing: Data from the INTERSTROKE Study, which was conducted in 3000 people in 22 countries, showed that 90% of strokes are caused by 9 factors, all of which are under your control to a greater or lesser extent:

• High blood pressure (hypertension)
• Smoking
• Low waist-to-hip ratio
• Unhealthy diet
• Lack of exercise
• Moderate/high alcohol intake
• Stress or depression
• Diabetes
• High ratio of apoB to apoA1 lipoprotein

Journal Watch has a summary. The original article appeared in The Lancet. 

Can Singing Help Stroke Victims?

Stroke victims who can no longer communicate with speech may be able to sing instead. This according to a WSJ.com report from a major science meeting that opened this weekend. Here's an excerpt:

The research, presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science here Saturday, produced often dramatic results in 12 patients whose speech was impaired after a stroke to the left hemisphere of the brain. Such patients are virtually trapped inside their bodies after a stroke, struggling to communicate even basic needs. In the study, patients who were taught to essentially sing their words improved their verbal abilities and maintained the improvement after the end of the therapy, according to Gottfried Schlaug, a neurology professor at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School.

The patients may continue to speak in a more "sing-songy" way than a person with normal speech, but they are able to say functional phrases, such as that they are thirsty or where they live, according to Dr. Schlaug, whose work was met with enthusiastic applause after his presentation.

Learn more about Dr. Schlaug's work at the Music and Neuroimaging Laboratory at Harvard.

Sudden Hearing Loss May Be a Stroke Warning

Sudden hearing loss may be a warning of impending stroke, according to new research conducted in Taiwan and published in the journal Stroke. Here's how Physician's FirstWatch summarized the findings.

Using the National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan, investigators identified some 1400 adults who were hospitalized for sudden hearing loss and nearly 5700 age-matched controls hospitalized for appendectomy. Over the next 5 years, stroke occurred in 13% of hearing loss patients and 8% of controls. After adjustment for factors including sex and comorbid conditions, hearing loss patients remained at significantly elevated risk for stroke (hazard ratio, 1.6).

The authors recommend that all patients with sudden sensorineural hearing loss undergo complete examinations in an effort to identify those who may be at increased risk for future stroke.

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You'd Know These Stroke Symptoms

It's hard to believe that only about one third of Americans know that these are symptoms of stroke. Wouldn't you call 9-1-1 if any of the following happened to you or a companion? Geez.

• sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm, or leg;
• sudden confusion or trouble speaking;
• sudden difficulty walking, dizziness, or loss of balance;
• sudden trouble seeing;
• severe headache

The CDC says this is true, but come on.

Have Your Stroke During Business Hours

That seems to be the message from a pair of studies reported in Cardiology Today. Both groups of investigators found that the death rate was higher when people came to the hospital with strokes on the night or weekend than during regular business hours. Explanation? People get better care for a medical catastrophe like stroke when all hands are on deck, like Monday through Friday, 9-5, than on a weekend or evening, when staffing is slim. A lot of stroke specialists would like to see as many stroke victims as possible treated at comprehensive stroke centers.