Thousands of lives saved as risk of death from a stroke falls by one-quarter

THE risk of death from a stroke in the UK has dropped by one-quarter, saving thousands of lives, researchers have revealed.

Thousands more patients each year are surviving strokes thanks to improvements in care and medication and the numbers facing disability have also fallen.

Researchers have found the risk of death from a stroke dropped by 24 per cent, between 2000 and 2015.

The study, conducted by Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital Trust, London, suggests better treatment and care have reduced the death rate. This includes higher admission rates to hospital, increased use of CT and MRI scans, and more frequent treatment with thrombolytic and anticoagulant medications in the acute phase of the stroke.

They looked at 3,128 patients from South London Stroke

Register who had suffered an ischaemic stroke, a stroke caused by a blood clot, over a 15-year period.

The death rate within a year of the stroke dropped from 32.6% in 2000 to 20.15% in 2015, and the risk of disability in the year after a stroke also fell from 34.7% in 2000 to 26.7% in 2015.

With 52,000 ischaemic strokes a year in Britain, this translated into 6,300 more patients surviving over a year, and 3,200 fewer patients each year having a disability as a result of a stroke.

In 2016, 38,000 people died in the UK as a result of a stroke.

It is the fourth single leading cause of death in England and Wales, and the third biggest cause of death in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Between 2000 and 2015 the rate of strokes in the area of the study decreased by 43% with the risk of death from stroke falling by 24%.

The paper showed the risk of death and disability had reduced for all genders, and for both black and white patients.

Lead author Dr Yanzhong Wang, Reader in Medical Statistics at King’s College London, said:

“It’s really positive news to see that for patients who do have a stroke, the risk of death and disability is decreasing.

“Alongside our previous work showing a reduction in the rate of strokes it shows that, although there is still more to do, trends are moving in the right direction.

“We also believe a shift towards patients having less severe strokes, perhaps caused by improved public health, could also play a role in the change.”

A stroke can affect people differently, some suffer weakness and paralysis and others may face a longer road to recovery.

Dr Wang said: “We’re really grateful to all the patients who have taken part in the South London Stroke Register.

“Their valuable input is giving us an incredibly detailed understanding of stroke rates, which can help us treat and prevent strokes in the future.”