[Patients with acute cerebral infarction admitted to stroke unit].

BACKGROUND

Treatment of acute cerebral infarction has greatly improved over the last 15 years. The purpose of this article is to describe patients with acute cerebral infarction admitted to a stroke unit from a geographically well defined population between 2007 and 2009.

MATERIAL AND METHOD

All patients were included aged over 15 years with acute cerebral infarction living in a well defined geographical area and admitted to Haukeland University Hospital between August 2007 and October 2009. Risk factors, neurological status, treatment, complications, results of evaluation, and outcome were registered in a stroke database (Bergen Stroke Registry). Data on mortality as of November 2009 were provided by the official population registry.

RESULTS

In total, 553 patients with acute cerebral infarction were included: 260 (47%) females and 293 (53%) men. The mean age was 74.2 years. The incidence of patients admitted with acute cerebral infarction was 105 per 100,000 citizens per year. Thrombolysis was administered to 15%. Duplex sonography of neck vessels disclosed plaques in 68%. Atrial fibrillation was known before admission in 20%. Evaluation disclosed atrial fibrillation in another 12%. Recurrence of cerebral infarction occurred in 1% during the hospital stay. Estimated survival after one year was 82%.

CONCLUSION

The incidence of acute cerebral infarction in Bergen is low. Systematic evaluation discloses risk factors with therapeutic consequences in many patients.