A HOSPITAL-BASED AND A POPULATION-BASED STROKE REGISTRY YIELD DIFFERENT RESULTS - THE EXPERIENCE IN DIJON, FRANCE

Background and purpose: The aim of this study was to demonstrate the d ifferent results obtained from a population-based and a hospital-based stroke study in the same city. Methods: Between January 1 and Decembe r 31, 1993, we collected information on all of the first strokes in th e population of the city of Dijon, in conjunction with the Dijon Strok e Registry, collecting the first-ever strokes from patients living in Dijon as well as on all the first strokes in residents and nonresident s of Dijon who were treated at Dijon University Hospital. Demographic details, medical history, vascular risk factors, stroke subtype, as di agnosed by CT scan, and mortality rates were compared between the stro kes observed in the population of the city of Dijon among residents as well as nonresidents in Dijon who were treated at Dijon University Ho spital. Results: We collected information on 210 strokes observed in t he population of Dijon city, 171 Dijon residents and 395 non-Dijon cit y residents hospitalized at the University Hospital of Dijon. These th ree groups were quite different. The residents of Dijon treated for st roke at the University Hospital were younger and their incidence of ce rebral hemorrhage, cardiac arrhythmia, ischemic heart disease and case fatality rate were higher than those from the Dijon Stroke Registry. Conclusions: Type of stroke data bank is very important in order to de scribe cerebrovascular disease. Hospital-based studies tend to include more severe strokes, those occurring in a younger population, and tho se having a higher mortality. Population-based studies, on the other h and, give a somewhat different picture of stroke.