American Stroke Rates Decline, Study Says

iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Stroke rates among Americans have dropped in the last 20 years, according to a new study, with the number of stroke-related deaths on the decline as well.

Researchers followed 14,357 participants in four different U.S. communities from 1987 to 2011 and found significant stroke decrease in those 65 and older. Still, there was a necessity to lower the number of incidences in younger groups, according to the report.

The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found a 24 percent overall decline in first-time strokes in the past two decades, along with a 20 percent drop per decade in deaths.
 
The decreases can be linked to smoking cessation and hypertension medications, researchers concluded.

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