Biography
Biography: Redina Hasani
Abstract
Presently, there is limited information on stroke care in the very old (80 years and older). In part, this is due to a paucity of publications on stroke in the elderly and low participation of this group. Population aging is a summary term to describe shifts in the age distribution of a population toward older ages, most in highly developed countries. In 2050, these figures are projected to be 29% and 18% in developed and developing countries respectively. A stroke occur when the blood supply to part of the brain is interrupted or severely reduced, depriving brain tissue of oxygen and nutrients. About 85 percent of strokes are ischemic strokes and main etiological factors include high blood pressure, cigarette smoking, diabetes, and obstructive sleep apnea. Stroke incidence rates increase steeply with age. Therefore, we would also expect a rise in the number of elderly patients with stroke in the future. We included in this study 504 patients with ischemic stroke admitted to neurovascular service, in University Hospital Centre “Mother Teresa”, Tirana Albania, between February 2011, and December 2014. Aging-related alterations in cerebral vessels might eventually reduce cerebrovascular reserves and increase the susceptibility of the brain to vascular insufficiency and ischemic injury. Such changes could underlie the increase in morbidity and mortality rates following ischemic stroke in older individuals and the high level of vascular cognitive impairment in this age group. Our results constitute a first step in the understanding of stoke outcomes in those over age 80 and the approaching burden and challenges faced by the healthcare system.