Data from 3.2 million people – the largest study ever done on stroke and dementia – suggests the damage done by a stroke seriously raises the risk of getting dementia. Experts have long thought that there was a link between the two, because stroke risk and dementia risk are both raised by high blood pressure and heart problems. The new study by researchers at Exeter ­University found that even after blood pressure, ­cardiovascular disease and diabetes are taken into account, having a stroke increases the risk of dementia by up to 100%, meaning strokes double the risk. Researchers found the period ­immediately after a stroke carries the highest risk of developing dementia. Researcher Dr Ilianna Lourida, of the University of Exeter Medical School, said: “We found that a history of stroke increases dementia risk by around 70%, and recent strokes more than doubled the risk.

Source: Daily Mirror October 07, 2018 15:45 UTC