title: Risk factors and subtypes of acute ischemic stroke. A study at King Fahd Hospital of the University.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To identify the different subtypes of acute ischemic stroke, and estimate the frequency of various risk factors among these patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this retrospective, cross-sectional study, we reviewed the medical records of patients admitted with the diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke at King Fahd Hospital of the University, Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia from March 2008 till December 2015. The demographic characteristics, subtypes of stroke, risk factors (hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, coronary artery disease, atrial fibrillation, valvular heart disease) and other relevant data were documented on pre-defined data sheets.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The records of 343 patients were included in the study; 64.4% were male and 35.6% were female. The mean age was 59.3+/-13.6 (mean+/-SD) years for males, and 66.8+/-14.9 years for females. Small vessel occlusion was the most common etiologic subtype of ischemic stroke (32.1%), followed by cardio embolic (21.9%), and large artery atherosclerosis (14.6%). The middle cerebral artery was the most commonly affected territory. Hypertension was found in 78.1%, diabetes mellitus in 62.7%, hyperlipidemia in 54.8%, and ischemic heart disease in 24.2% of patients.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Small vessel occlusion was the most common etiology in our cohort. The onset of stroke at a relatively younger age group in the male population is of great concern and needs to be verified by further epidemiological studies. Adequate control of modifiable risk factors may help in reducing the disease burden caused by stroke.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, King Fahd Hospital of the University (KFHU), Al-Khobar, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. E-mail: azafar@ud.edu.sa.
authors.forename: Azra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zafar
authors.forename: Fahd A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Al-Khamis
authors.forename: Aishah I
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Al-Bakr
authors.forename: Abdulla A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Alsulaiman
authors.forename: Amir H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Msmar
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000453:epidemiology; D004617:Embolism / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006949:Hyperlipidemias / Q000453:epidemiology; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology; D020244:Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017202:Myocardial Ischemia / Q000453:epidemiology; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012529:Saudi Arabia / Q000453:epidemiology; D020521:Stroke / Q000453:epidemiology*