Stroke Risk Factors

own and produces no lasting damage. Think of TIAs as “warning strokes.” However, most strokes are not preceded by TIAs. Stroke and TIA have exactly the same warning signs. If you see any of them, it is a medical emergency: dial 9-1-1.

Certain blood disorders. A high red blood cell count thickens the blood and makes clots more likely. Doctors may treat this problem by removing blood cells or prescribing “blood thinners.” Sickle cell disease (also called sickle cell anemia) is a genetic (family history) disorder that mainly affects African Americans and makes red blood cells less capable of carrying oxygen. They also tend to stick to vessel walls, which can block arteries to the brain and cause a stroke.

High blood cholesterol. A high level of total cholesterol (240 mg/dL or higher) is a major risk factor for heart disease, which raises stroke risk. High levels of LDL (remember the “l” means less desirable or lousy) cholesterol (greater than 100 mg/dL) and triglycerides (blood fats, 150 mg/dL or higher) increase the risk of stroke in people with previous coronary heart disease, ischemic stroke, or TIA. Low levels (less than 40 mg/dL for men; less than 50 mg/dL for women) of HDL (highly desirable; healthy or good) cholesterol also may raise stroke risk.

Stroke risk factors you can’t modify

Increasing age. People of all ages, including children, have strokes. However, roughly two-thirds of all strokes occur in people over age 65. Stroke risk doubles in each succeeding decade, so a 75-year-old has twice the risk of a 65-year-old.

Sex (gender). In most age groups, more men than women will have strokes in a given year. However, women account for more than half of all stroke deaths because they tend to have strokes later in life. Pregnant women have a higher stroke risk, as do women taking birth control pills who also smoke or have high blood pressure or other risk factors.

Heredity (family history). Blood relatives of people who have had strokes are at increased risk.

Race. The risk of stroke among African Americans is twice that of Caucasians. This may be due to the fact that blacks have higher rates of high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity. Increased rates of poverty and poor access to health care may also contribute.

NOTE: In the 11 states of the so-called Stroke Belt, stroke rates are higher than in the rest of the country. Both blacks and whites in these states are at increased risk, but it is particularly high for African Americans. Basically, the Stroke Belt consists of the states of the Confederacy.

The states of North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia make up the “Stroke Buckle.” Blacks and whites in these states have even higher stroke rates than the other states. African Americans in these states have among the highest stroke rates of any group anywhere in the world. Where the average age of first stroke is 65 for a white man in Minnesota, it is 45 for a black man in the Stroke Buckle.

Prior stroke or heart attack. Anyone who has had a stroke is at much higher risk of having another one. About 28 percent of strokes happen in people who have already had one. Previous heart attacks also increase stroke risk.

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