Epidemiologic Evaluation and Seasonal Variations of Stroke Risk Factors among Patients with First and Recurrent Stroke

Stroke is the third cause of death in developed countries and is the commonest neurologic disease resulting in disability. This study was designed to evaluate epidemiologic characteristics and seasonal distribution of stroke among patients with first and recurrent stroke. This cross-sectional study was conducted during 2010-2011 in the departments of neurology at two hospitals affiliated to Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran. Overall, 590 ninety patients above 16 years old with confirmed stroke diagnosis enrolled in this study. Hypertension (HTN), diabetes, dyslipidemia, atrial fibrillation (AF), myocardial infarction, valvular diseases (VD), smoking and addiction, ischemic heart disease, history of prior stroke and seasons of the year were registered. Among the 590 patients, 287 (48.6%) were females and 303 (51.4%) were males. Moreover, 94 patients (15.9%), 89 (15.1%), 110 (18.6%), 162 (27.5%), 124 (21%) and 11 (1.9%) were < 50, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80-89 and ≥ 90 years old, respectively (P = 0.01). HTN, AF and VD were the commonest risk factors in patients with prior history of stroke compared to those with first strokes (P = 0.01, P = 0.01, and P = 0.02, respectively). This study indicated no difference in the prevalence of stroke between seasons. HTN, AF, and VD were the commonest risk factors in patients with prior history of stroke.