Rural Ontario residents at higher risk of stroke than urban counterparts: study

TORONTO — Ontario residents living in rural communities are at a greater risk of having a stroke than their counterparts in urban centres, new research released Thursday suggests.

Those that do suffer a stroke are also more likely to die from the condition if they live in communities with a population of less than 10,000 and are less likely to be screened for conditions that elevate the risk of stroke in the first place, according to the study by the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences.

Researchers laid out their findings in a paper published in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes,

Moira Kapral, the lead author and a professor of medicine at the University of Toronto, said the research did not delve deeply into the causes for the disparities between city dwellers and those in smaller communities. She said, however, that the findings highlight health-care gaps that rural residents may be wise to address.

Researchers formed their conclusions after examining data from 6 million Ontario residents gathered between 2008 and 2012.

They divided their study groups into those who had not had a stroke and those who had, with a view to determining whether geographical location had an impact on the degree of care and screening patients received.

The research, culled from numerous linked databases tracking medical information in Ontario, found that 81 per cent of urban dwellers who had not suffered a stroke were screened for diabetes compared to 71 per cent of their rural peers.