Strokes Strike Young Adults

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Often considered a disease of the elderly, strokes are now striking adults at much young ages.  New research finds the average age of stroke patients has gone from 71 to 68 since the 1990s.

"The average age of stroke is declining and a greater proportion of young people are having stroke," said Dr. Brett Kissela of the University of Cincinnati Neuroscience.

Researchers from the University of Cincinnati analyzed stroke trends for those living around the greater Cincinnati region.  Since the 1990s, the percentage of stroke patients between the ages of 20 and 45 increased from 4 to more than 7-percent.  Why?

"Diseases like diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and obesity are getting more and more common in young people," said Kissela.

Doctors say high blood pressure is the number one risk factor for having a stroke.  High blood pressure is a condition that's easily detected and often treatable.  The study also found fewer strokes among people over age 75.

That's an improvement doctors attribute to better awareness of stroke which now may need to reach a younger crowd.  Symptoms of a stroke include weakness or numbness on one side of the body, slurring of speech, and trouble understanding what people are saying to you.  Any of those signs requires a quick call to 911.