title: The Epidemiology of Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke.
abstract: The burden of stroke is increasing due to aging population and unhealthy lifestyle habits. The considerable rise in atrial fibrillation (AF) is due to greater diffusion of risk factors and screening programs. The link between AF and ischemic stroke is strong. The subtype most commonly associated with AF is cardioembolic stroke, which is particularly severe and shows the highest rates of mortality and permanent disability. A trend toward a higher prevalence of cardioembolic stroke in high-income countries is probably due to the greater diffusion of AF and the control of atherosclerotic of risk factors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnological and Applied Clinical Sciences, Neurological Institute, University of L'Aquila, Via Vetoio, L'Aquila 67100, Italy. Electronic address: francesca.pistoia@univaq.it.
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Pistoia
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnological and Applied Clinical Sciences, Neurological Institute, University of L'Aquila, Via Vetoio, L'Aquila 67100, Italy.
authors.forename: Simona
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sacco
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnological and Applied Clinical Sciences, Neurological Institute, University of L'Aquila, Via Vetoio, L'Aquila 67100, Italy.
authors.forename: Cindy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Tiseo
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnological and Applied Clinical Sciences, Neurological Institute, University of L'Aquila, Via Vetoio, L'Aquila 67100, Italy.
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Degan
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnological and Applied Clinical Sciences, Neurological Institute, University of L'Aquila, Via Vetoio, L'Aquila 67100, Italy.
authors.forename: Raffaele
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ornello
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnological and Applied Clinical Sciences, Neurological Institute, University of L'Aquila, Via Vetoio, L'Aquila 67100, Italy.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Carolei
mesh_terms: D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D014943:Global Health; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D020521:Stroke / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology
keywords: Atrial fibrillation; Cardioembolic stroke; Cryptogenic stroke; Epidemiology; Stroke