Age alone should be screening factor for stroke, expert says

Age should be used to identify which individuals should be screened for stroke or heart disease, the results of a study have indicated.

Using age as a risk factor for the cardiovascular conditions could replace the current methods of screening without reducing effectiveness, according to research from Barts and The London Medical School.

Age screening using a cut off point of 55 years resulted in an 84 per cent detection rate and 24 per cent false positives.

The screening methods currently in use can also achieve the 84 per cent detection rate with a false positive rate of 21 per cent.

Lead author Professor Sir Nicholas Wald said: "This study shows that age screening for future cardiovascular disease is simpler than current assessments, with a similar screening performance and cost effectiveness. It also avoids the need for blood tests and medical examinations."

This follows news that using a susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI) test could better identify and classify strokes.

Researchers at the University of California found that treatment time and overall recovery were improved when SWI was used alongside the MRI scans.

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