Estimation of mortality and morbidity due to strokes in India

In order to Control the stroke problem, its magnitude should be assessed. I ndia is ranked among the countries where the information on stroke is minim al. We decided to review the information available in order to estimate the mortality and morbidity due to stroke in India. Information was collected through electronic search, hand search and contact with experts. Each artic le was reviewed for relevance and epidemiological rigor. The demographic da ta were as derived from published government figures. The prevalence from i ndividual studies was pooled and weighted based on sample size. Analysis wa s done separately for males and females at 10-year intervals (20 years onwa rds). A total of 7 studies was located, but 2 were discarded. All were done in rural areas except 2 which also included urban areas. The prevalence wa s estimated as 203 per 100,000 population above 20 years amounting to a tot al of about 1 million cases. The male to female ratio was 1.7. Around 12% o f all strokes occurred in population below 40 years. The estimation of stro ke mortality was seriously limited by the method of classification of cause of death in the country. The best estimate derived was 102,000 deaths; whi ch represented 1.2% of total deaths in the country. There is need to initia te steps to collect data on morbidity and mortality due to stroke in the co untry as a first step towards control measures. Copyright (C) 2001 S. Karge r AG, Basel.