Statistics

Stroke is the third leading cause of death in the United States. Over 143,579 people die each year from stroke in the United States.

Stroke is the leading cause of serious, long-term disability in the United States.
Each year, about 795,000 people suffer a stroke. About 600,000 of these are first attacks, and 185,000 are recurrent attacks.

Nearly three-quarters of all strokes occur in people over the age of 65. The risk of having a stroke more than doubles each decade after the age of 55.

Strokes can—and do—occur at ANY age. Nearly one quarter of strokes occur in people under the age of 65.

Stroke death rates are higher for African Americans than for whites, even at younger ages.

Among adults age 20 and older, the prevalence of stroke in 2005 was 6,500,000 (about 2,600,000 males and 3,900,000 females).

On average, every 40 seconds someone in the United States has a stroke.

Each year, about 55,000 more women than men have a stroke.Men’s stroke incidence rates are greater than women’s at younger ages but not at older ages. The male/female incidence ratio is 1.25 at ages 55–64; 1.50 for ages 65–74; 1.07 at 75–84 and 0.76 at 85 and older.

Of all strokes, 87 percent are ischemic, 10 percent are intracerebral hemorrhage, and 3 percent are subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Stroke accounted for about one of every 17 deaths in the United States in 2005. Stroke mortality for 2005 was 143,579 (56,586 males, 86,993 females).

From 1995–2005, the stroke death rate fell 29.7 percent and the actual number of stroke deaths declined 13.5 percent.

The risk of ischemic stroke in current smokers is about double that of nonsmokers after adjustment for other risk factors.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is an independent risk factor for stroke, increasing risk about five-fold.

High blood pressure is the most important risk factor for stroke.

Copied from StrokeCenter.org.

Impact of Stroke

About 795,000 Americans each year suffer a new or recurrent stroke. That means, on average, a stroke occurs every 40 seconds.

Stroke kills more than 137,000 people a year. That's about 1 of every 18 deaths. It's the No. 3 cause of death behind diseases of the heart and cancer.

On average, every 4 minutes someone dies of stroke.

About 40 percent of stroke deaths occur in males, and 60 percent in females.

The 2006 stroke death rates per 100,000 population for specific groups were 41.7 for white males, 41.1 for white females, 67.7 for black males and 57.0 for black females.

Americans will pay about $73.7 billion in 2010 for stroke-related medical costs and disability.

Copied from American Stroke Association.