title: Stroke burden and stroke care system in Asia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Stroke is a major cause of death and disability. Asia is the largest and mostly populated continent of the world. The Asian Stroke Advisory Panel (ASAP) consists of stroke neurologists from 12 different countries in 13 Asian regions. It has been established for 17 years, and holds regular meetings for reviewing the stroke activities in Asia. It also helps in conducting several multinational research projects. This study is one of the ASAP projects and aims to explore stroke care systems in member countries in Asia.
  
  
  METHODS
  The survey is categorized into five main parts including the general country information, stroke epidemiology, stroke risk factors, stroke care systems, and national stroke professional societies.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A higher proportion of ischemic stroke in comparison to hemorrhagic stroke was found in all countries. The overall incidence of stroke in Asia is between 116 and 483/100,000 per year.When compared to 1999, a 2-3-fold increase in the number of neurologists was observed in all countries.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There is a favorable trend in all Asian countries regarding the need to increase the number of neurologists and facilities to effectively administer stroke care.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Division of Neurology, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.
authors.forename: Nijasri C
authors.initials: NC
authors.lastname: Suwanwela
authors.forename: Niphon
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Poungvarin
mesh_terms: D001208:Asia / Q000453:epidemiology; D017281:Cost of Illness; D003695:Delivery of Health Care; D006801:Humans; D020521:Stroke / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy