Patients who suffer stroke-like attacks can have mortality rates 20 per cent higher than the general population, new research finds, leading to calls for better stroke prevention strategies for those who experience a transient ischemic attack (TIA).
In one of the largest studies of its kind, more than 20,000 adults hospitalised in New South Wales between 2000-2007 with a TIA were compared against the general population for mortality rates.
A TIA occurs when blood flow to the brain ceases for a period of time, leaving a person with stroke-like symptoms for a short period. But a TIA is seen as a warning sign that a real stroke may occur in the future if preventative steps are not taken.
Read more at UNSW Sydney