A new study has found that people who live in neighborhoods that are more vulnerable to heat are more likely to suffer from severe strokes.
The research was led by the Harvey L. Neiman Health Policy Institute and was published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.
The study was conducted by researchers at the PRIME research center at Northwell Health, which is the largest health system in New York state.
They looked at all patients who were admitted for ischemic stroke—a common type of stroke caused by a blood clot—over a 10-year period. Each patient was given a score based on the Heat Vulnerability Index (HVI), which measures how likely a neighborhood is to experience deaths due to heat.
The researchers found that people living in neighborhoods with the highest levels of heat vulnerability were 40% more likely to have a severe stroke. This suggests that heat exposure may not only increase the chance of having a stroke, but it may also affect how serious that stroke is.
As the climate gets hotter, especially in urban areas, this kind of research is becoming more important. In the past, studies have shown that high heat can raise the risk of stroke and even death. But this is one of the first studies to show that where you live—and how vulnerable your area is to heat—can affect how bad a stroke might be.
The Heat Vulnerability Index used in the study is based on both environmental factors like surface temperature and green space, and social factors like poverty and race.
These combined elements give a full picture of how heat affects people in different neighborhoods. The HVI was developed by the New York City Department of Health and was used here to analyze all ZIP codes in the study area.
Dr. Jason Wang, the lead author and a professor at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, said that the HVI is helpful because it includes both environmental and social factors. This makes it a powerful tool for understanding health risks and helping policymakers address inequalities.
Dr. Pina C. Sanelli, senior author of the study, added that the HVI could become a new way to identify stroke risk. By recognizing that neighborhood heat vulnerability is connected to stroke severity, health officials could better focus on population health strategies that address these issues.
The severity of stroke in this study was measured using the NIH Stroke Scale. This tool checks different functions like speech, vision, movement, and consciousness to see how much damage a stroke has caused. The most serious stroke cases were found to be more common in areas with the highest heat vulnerability.
Dr. Elizabeth Rula, Executive Director of the Neiman Health Policy Institute, noted that the study comes at an important time. As climate change continues and the population ages, more people are becoming vulnerable to strokes.
She also pointed out that earlier research from this team has shown how important it is to have access to advanced tools and treatments for strokes. The HVI can now help guide where these resources are most needed.
In summary, this study shows that where you live can affect your stroke risk and outcomes. It also shows how climate and social issues are deeply connected to health. Addressing both could help improve stroke care and reduce health inequalities in the future.
If you care about stroke, please read studies that diets high in flavonoids could help reduce stroke risk, and MIND diet could slow down cognitive decline after stroke.
For more health information, please see recent studies about antioxidants that could help reduce the risk of dementia, and tea and coffee may help lower your risk of stroke, dementia.
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