Estimated Worldwide Lifetime Stroke Risk Is 25% and Growing

Stroke places considerable burdens of long-term disability and premature mortality on individuals, families, and society. The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study synthesizes epidemiological data to compare national, regional, and global estimates of incidence, mortality, and disability for hundreds of diseases, including ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke. Previous reports have shown that by these measures, the global burden of stroke has been increasing, and that contrary to conventional wisdom, most stroke disease burden continues to be borne by low- and middle-income countries.

Now, national, regional, and global estimates of lifetime stroke risk that consider competing risks for death from all other causes are available. In 2016, estimated…