Poor people more likely to have strokes: study

Posted July 3, 2011 23:41:00

New research has found people who live in poorer areas have a 70 percent higher chance of having a stroke.

The study by the George Institute for Global Health, which was published in the Australian Medical Journal, analysed more than 3,000 stroke cases from Australia and New Zealand over an eight year period.

It found those in poorer areas have strokes at a younger age - around 68-years old - compared to 77 for for wealthier people.

The author, Emma Heeley, has attributed the results to a higher prevalence of hypertension, diabetes and cigarette smoking among the disadvantaged.

"In the people who had a stroke in the poorer areas they were more likely to be smokers and have these risk factors of smoking hypertension and diabetes," she said.

Dr Heeley says the findings suggest that up to one-fifth of strokes could be prevented by improving the socioeconomic status of those in deprived areas.

"Our analysis provides evidence that people living in areas that are relatively more deprived in socioeconomic terms experience higher rates of stroke," she said.

"Effective preventative measures in the more deprived areas of the community could substantially reduce rates of stroke."

Men had significantly higher rates of stroke than women across all socioeconomic backgrounds except the most deprived.

- ABC/AAP

Tags: community-and-society, health, australia

Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/07/03/3259850.htm

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