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(HealthNewsDigest.com) – DALLAS, — Having a transient ischemic attack (TIA), or “mini stroke,” can reduce your life expectancy by 20 percent, according to a new study in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.
“People experiencing a TIA won’t die from it, but they will have a high
risk of early stroke and also an increased risk of future problems that
may reduce life expectancy,” said Melina Gattellari, Ph.D., senior
lecturer at the School of Public Health and Community Medicine in The
University of New South Wales, Sydney and Ingham Institute in
Liverpool, Australia.
“Our findings suggest that patients and doctors should be careful to
intensely manage lifestyle and medical risk factors for years after a
transient ischemic attack.”
The statistical analysis is the first to comprehensively quantify the
impact of hospital-diagnosed TIA on life expectancy.
Researchers identified 22,157 adults hospitalized with a TIA from July
2000 to June 2007 in New South Wales, Australia, and tracked their
medical records for a minimum two years (median 4.1 years). They
gathered death registry data for the area through June 2009 and
compared death rates in the study population to those in the general
population. Median ages were 78 for female patients and 73 for male
patients; 23.9 percent were younger than 65 and 19.4 percent were older
than 85.
At one year after hospitalization, 91.5 percent of TIA patients were
still living, compared to 95 percent expected survival in the general
population. At five years, survival of TIA patients was 13.2 percent
lower than expected — 67.2 percent were still alive, compared to an
expected survival of 77.4 percent.
By the end of the study, at the nine-year mark, survival of TIA
patients was 20 percent lower than expected.
Increasing age was associated with an increasing risk of death compared
to the matched population. TIA had only minimal effect on patients
younger than 50, but significantly reduced life expectancy in those
older than 65. Compared to patients younger than 50, relative risk of
death for patients 75-84 was 7.77 times higher and 11.02 times higher
for those 85 and older.
“We thought the reverse may be true — that survival rates in older TIA
patients would be more like other older people, who, although not
affected by TIA, are affected by other conditions that may influence
their survival,” Gattellari said. “But even a distant history of TIA is
major determinant of prognosis; certainly, the risks faced by TIA
patients go well beyond their early stroke risk.”
Researchers also examined TIA patients’ medical records for other
common health risks:
— Congestive heart failure was associated with 3.3 times more risk of
dying.
— Atrial fibrillation was associated with twice the risk of dying.
— Prior hospitalization for stroke meant 2.63 times the risk of dying
compared to patients without it; further, this effect grew over time,
peaking at 5.01 times more risk three years after TIA admission.
In general, adults with a history of TIA can maximize their chances of
living a long life by adopting healthy lifestyle habits, such as
exercising daily, maintaining a healthy weight, quitting smoking and
eating healthy, Gattellari said.
Co-authors are Chris Goumas, M.P.H.; Frances Garden, M.Biost.; and John
M. Worthington, M.B.B.S. Author disclosures are on the manuscript.The
Clinical Excellence Commission and the Commonwealth Department of
Health and Ageing partly funded the study.
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