stroke Tag

Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Guidelines

Heart disease and strokes are the number one and number four leading causes of death in the United States. About one-third of American adults have elevated levels of bad cholesterol and nearly two-thirds have high blood pressure or pre-hypertension. Approximately 610,000 Americans endure a first stroke every year and another 525,000 have a first heart attack. To help reduce these statistics, new heart disease and stroke prevention guidelines were released by the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology in 2013.

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Am I Having a Stroke?

United States Stroke Statistics

• Approximately 795,000 Americans each year suffer a stroke; about 600,000 of these are first time incidents and 185,000 are recurrent attacks.
• Stroke kills more than 140,000 Americans each year; it is the third leading cause of death in the United States.
• Stroke is the leading cause of serious, long-term disability in the United States.
• Almost three-quarters of strokes occur in people over the age of 65. In fact, a person’s risk of having a stroke more than doubles each decade after the age of 55. But one in four strokes happen to people under the age of 65.
• Between 1995 and 2005, the stroke death rate fell by 30 percent and the actual number of stroke deaths declined by 14 percent.
• High blood pressure is the biggest risk factor for stroke.
• A person’s risk of stroke doubles if they are a current smoker

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