Stroke Risk in Children

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Boys and black children are at an increased risk for a stroke, according to new research, yet researchers say the common risk factors for a stroke in children do not fully explain these findings.

It is well documented that black adults and adult males have a higher risk for a stroke but little is known about childhood stroke. Researchers from the University of California, San Francisco, looked at which children suffered a stroke over a 10-year period.

The study included 2,278 children who were hospitalized for stroke. The children ranged in age from 1 month old to 19 years old. Researchers examined hospital discharge records to determine what type of stroke the child had, the gender of the child, and the ethnicity of the child.

Researchers report the annual incidence of a stroke in children was 2.3 strokes per 100,000 children. Half of the strokes suffered were ischemic strokes resulting from blocked arteries. The study reports boys were found to be 28-percent more likely to suffer a stroke than girls. One of the risk factors for a childhood stroke is head trauma. Researchers say while boys were more likely to have a head trauma than girls, this did not fully explain the increased risk to the young males.

Another risk factor for a childhood stroke is being diagnosed with sickle cell disease. Sickle cell disease is a blood disorder affecting the red blood cells that most commonly strikes black children. Researchers say black children were twice as likely to have a stroke than white children in general. After excluding cases were the child also had sickle cell disease, black children still had a 61- percent increased risk of a stroke.

Researchers say the study indicates sickle cell disease and head trauma do not fully explain why boys and black children are at an increased risk of having a stroke. They feel further research is needed to explore unrecognized risk factors such as genetic disposition or unidentified environmental risks. They hope this will shed some light on why children have strokes and why black children and boys are at a higher risk for a stroke.

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