Study reports risk of 'silent stroke'

One in ten apparently healthy middle-aged participants with no symptoms of stroke were found to have been injured from "silent strokes" in a recent US study.

Silent cerebral infarction (SCI) or "silent stroke" is a brain injury probably caused by a blood clot interrupting blood flow in the brain, the researchers report in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.

It is reported to be a risk factor for future strokes and a sign of progressive brain damage that may result in long-term dementia.

Sudha Seshadri, co-author of the study and associate professor of neurology at Boston University School of Medicine, says the findings highlight the need for an early detection and treatment of cardiovascular risk factors in middle-age

Dr Seshadri continues: "This is especially true since SCIs have been associated with an increased risk of incident stroke and cognitive impairment."

In related news, researchers led by Herng-Ching Lin, a professor at Taipei Medical University School of Health Care Administration, have identified sudden loss of hearing as a potential early sign of vulnerability to stroke.

The preliminary findings, which are reported in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association, are based on data from medical insurance records on a national database.

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