Vim & Vigor - Summer 2012 - University of Virginia - (Page 55)

By Karen DoSS Bowman Stroke? ost people think of stroke as a health problem of the elderly, but incidences of stroke are increasing among middle-age Americans and even young adults. A study by researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found a troubling rise in stroke hospitalizations between 1995 and 2008 among people ages 15 to 44. Stroke is a leading cause of death among Americans and the leading cause of disabilities in adults. It most often occurs when blood flow to the brain is cut off by a clot, also known as ischemic stroke. Too Young For a M Think Again Bad and Good news Here’s what the CDC study found regarding ischemic stroke rates: Males 51% increase ages 15 to 34 Females 17% increase ages 15 to 34 increase ages 35 to 44 47% increase ages 35 to 44 36% The good news in the CDC study is that ischemic stroke rates decreased among those 45 and older. A separate study conducted recently by the Virginia Stroke Systems Task Force found that about 22 percent of the stroke patients in the Commonwealth’s four largest hospital systems were younger than 55—a percentage higher than the national average. “I’m extremely passionate about preventing stroke in the young because of the significant disabilities that occur,” says UVA neurologist Nina Solenski, M.D., who co-chairs the task force. “It’s devastating to think that you could spend the next 20 to 25 years in a nursing home for something that could have been corrected earlier on.” > Vim & Vigor • Sum mer 2012 55

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vim & Vigor - Summer 2012 - University of Virginia

Vim & Vigor - Summer 2012 - University of Virginia
Contents
Life in Balance
Healthy Dose
Vein Attraction
A Clear Focus on Fibroids
Compassionate Care
The Breakfast Club
Arthritis Answers
A TV Guide to Radiology
Take Aim
It Might NOT Be Cancer
Colin Firth
Step Up to the Plate
Life After Cancer
Get Dad to the Doc
Virtual Health
In Her Element
A Virginia Man Climbs Above Heart Attack and Heart Failure
Too Young for a Stroke? Think Again

Vim & Vigor - Summer 2012 - University of Virginia