Study: Air pollution, high temperatures increasing stroke cases globally

A new study by The Lancet Neurology says air pollution and high temperatures are contributing to an increase in stroke cases worldwide.

The study, published on Wednesday, said stroke affects nearly 12 million people annually, causing over seven million deaths.

The study said out of 23 risk factors responsible for 84 percent of the global stroke burden, air pollution, smoking, excess body weight, physical inactivity, and high blood pressure are the leading causes of the disease.

The report said from 1990 to 2021, the number of people who suffered a stroke rose by 70 percent, deaths caused by stroke increased by 44 percent, and stroke-related health loss grew by 32 percent.

The study also found that air pollution from tiny particles is a major risk factor for subarachnoid hemorrhage, accounting for 14 percent of deaths and disabilities from this severe type of stroke — similar to the effects of smoking.

According to the publication, the impact of high temperatures on poor health and early death from stroke has increased by 72 percent since 1990.

This trend, the study suggests, is expected to increase in the future.

“The condition is the third leading cause of death worldwide (after ischaemic heart disease and COVID-19). More than three-quarters of those affected by strokes live in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs),” the report said.

Valery Feigin, lead author of the study, said stroke prevention strategies and treatment currently in use are “not sufficiently effective”.

“The global growth of the number of people who develop stroke, and died from or remain disabled by stroke is growing fast,” Feigin said.

“New, proven effective population-wide and motivational individual prevention strategies that could be applied to all people at risk of having a stroke, regardless of the level of risk, should be implemented across the globe urgently.”

Catherine Johnson, study co-author, said there is a need for urgent climate actions and measures to reduce air pollution.

Johnson said identifying sustainable ways to work with communities to prevent and control modifiable risk factors for stroke “is essential to address this growing crisis”.