title: Sex differences in stroke: a socioeconomic perspective.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  A number of studies have explored the issue of sex differences in stroke from biomedical perspective; however, there are still large gaps in the existing knowledge. The purpose of this study was to assess whether the differences in socioeconomic status and living conditions between men and women may explain the part of the sex differences in incidence and outcomes of stroke.
  
  
  METHODS
  All stroke participants aged ≥60 years admitted in Vaseie Hospital in Sabzevar, Iran, from March 21, 2013, until March 20, 2014, were included in this study. Computerized tomography and magnetic resonance imaging were used to confirm stroke. A series ofχ2tests were performed and Statistical Program for Social Sciences, Version 21.0, was used to investigate the potential differences between older men and women in stroke incidence and outcomes.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 159 incident stroke cases were documented during 1 year. The annual rate of stroke was statistically significantly higher in elderly women than in elderly men (401 vs 357 per 100,000;P<0.001). Female elderly participants had significantly lower socioeconomic status, poorer living conditions, and higher lifetime history of depression, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus than their male counterparts.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings from this study showed that elderly women are more adversely affected by stroke in terms of incidence and outcomes of stroke than elderly men. The most noticeable result is that sex differences in socioeconomic status and living conditions may result in increased incidence of stroke and poorer outcomes in elderly women. Therefore, it is imperative to identify vulnerable elderly women and provide them appropriate treatment and services.
authors.affiliation: Iranian Research Center on Aging, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ahmad
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Delbari
authors.affiliation: Research Center on Healthy Aging, Sabzevar University of Medical Sciences, Sabzevar, Khorasan, Iran.
authors.forename: Farzane
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Keyghobadi
authors.affiliation: Iranian Research Center on Aging, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Malaysian Research Institute on Ageing (MyAgeing™), Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Yadollah Abolfathi
authors.initials: YA
authors.lastname: Momtaz
authors.affiliation: Research Center on Healthy Aging, Sabzevar University of Medical Sciences, Sabzevar, Khorasan, Iran.
authors.forename: Fariba
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Keyghobadi
authors.affiliation: Research Center on Healthy Aging, Sabzevar University of Medical Sciences, Sabzevar, Khorasan, Iran.
authors.forename: Reza
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Akbari
authors.affiliation: Research Center on Healthy Aging, Sabzevar University of Medical Sciences, Sabzevar, Khorasan, Iran.
authors.forename: Houman
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kamranian
authors.affiliation: Research Center on Healthy Aging, Sabzevar University of Medical Sciences, Sabzevar, Khorasan, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad Shouride
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Yazdi
authors.affiliation: Iranian Research Center on Aging, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Sayed Shahaboddin
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Tabatabaei
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurobiology, Division of Clinical Geriatrics, Care Sciences and Society (NVS), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Seyed-Mohammad
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Fereshtehnejad
keywords: aged; incidence; mortality; outcome; sex differences; socioeconomic disparities; vascular disease