Burden of stroke in Puerto Rico

Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death and the first cause of long-term disability in Puerto Rico. Trained staff reviewed and independently validated the medical records of patients who had been hospitalized with possible stroke at any of the 20 largest hospitals located in Puerto Rico during 2007, 2009, and 2011. The mean age of the 5005 newly diagnosed stroke patients (51.2% female) was 70 years. At the time of hospitalization, women were 4 1/2 years older, were less likely to be married (60.2% vs. 39.9%, P < 0.001), smoked less (5.8% vs. 13.4%, P < 0.001), and had significantly higher proportion of diabetes (56.0% vs. 54.8%), hypertension (89.1% vs. 85.0%), and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-Chol) > 100 mg/dL (65.7% vs. 57.5%) P < 0.05. Ischemic stroke represented 75% of all types of strokes. Atrial fibrillation was mentioned in 7.9% of the medical records. The risk for dying before discharge was similar for both genders, but was 40% higher for women than for men at one-year follow-up: age-adjusted odds ratio = 1.4 (95% confidence interval = 1.2-1.5).