Risk factors for acute stroke among South Asians compared to other racial/ethnic groups

• Published in: PloS one 2014-09, Vol.9 (9), p.e108901-e108901
• Main Authors: Gezmu, Tefera, Schneider, Dona, Demissie, Kitaw, Lin, Yong, Gizzi, Martin S
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: African Americans; Age Factors; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Asian; Asian people; Asians; Atherosclerosis; Blood; Blood glucose; Blood Glucose - analysis; Blood Pressure; Cardiovascular disease; Census of Population; Cigarettes; Classification; Clinical trials; Comparative analysis; Coronary vessels; Cultural differences; Diabetes mellitus; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - epidemiology; Diet; Drugs; Epidemiology; Ethnicity; Female; Health risks; Humans; Hypertension; Ischemia; Kennedy, John Fitzgerald (1917-1963); Life Style; Male; Medical imaging; Medical prognosis; Medicine and Health Sciences; Middle Aged; Minority & ethnic groups; Neurosciences; NMR; Nuclear magnetic resonance; Occlusion; Patients; Population studies; Prevalence; Public health; Public policy; Race; Regional analysis; Risk analysis; Risk Factors; Smoking; Social Class; Stroke; Stroke - epidemiology; Stroke - ethnology; Stroke - pathology; Stroke patients; Studies
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0108901

Studies of racial/ethnic variations in stroke rarely consider the South Asian population, one of the fastest growing sub-groups in the United States. This study compared risk factors for stroke among South Asians with those for whites, African-Americans, and Hispanics. Data on 3290 stroke patients were analyzed to examine risk differences among the four racial/ethnic groups. Data on 3290 patients admitted to a regional stroke center were analyzed to examine risk differences for ischemic stroke (including subtypes of small and large vessel disease) among South Asians, whites, African Americans and Hispanics. South Asians were younger and had higher rates of diabetes mellitus, blood pressure, and fasting blood glucose levels than other race/ethnicities. Prevalence of diabetic and antiplatelet medication use, as well as the incidence of small-artery occlusion ischemic stroke was also higher among South Asians. South Asians were almost a decade younger and had comparable socioeconomic levels as whites; however, their stroke risk factors were comparable to that of African Americans and Hispanics. Observed differences in stroke may be explained by dietary and life style choices of South Asian-Americans, risk factors that are potentially modifiable. Future population and epidemiologic studies should consider growing ethnic minority groups in the examination of the nature, outcome, and medical care profiles of stroke.