Diabetes Women Are More Vulnerable To Stroke Than Men

A recent study found that diabetes was a risk factor in developing
stroke for women but not men. This stroke is related to age as women
with diabetes over 55 years old had a significantly increased risk of

stroke compared to women with diabetes who were younger.

The study involved 30,154 diabetes patients who received care and
follow-up between January 1, 1999 and December 31, 2009.

All of the participants were new-onset diabetic patients as at the
time of the study and whom did not have a history of stroke or heart
disease. The average age of the participants was 51 years old and
involved 10,876 men and 19,278 women.

The participants were follow-up for an average of seven years and they
were given an HbA1c ( a test measuring the average level of a person's
blood sugar over the previous three months, and indicates whether or
not a patient's diabetes is under control. A person is considered to
have diabetes once the level rises above 6.5 percent) measurement at
the start of study and at the end of follow-up.

Out of the 30,154 participants,the findings showed that 2,949
participants had a stroke during the study period out of whom 1,093
were men and 1,856 were women.

The incidence rate of stroke for men was found to be 16 cases per
1,000 person-years (number of participants multiplied by number of
years in care), and 14 cases per 1,000 person-years for women.

However, the findings revealed that there was not a significant link
between high HbA1c and increased risk of stroke for the men. But the
risk of stroke increased in women as HbA1c increased.

And that the women aged 55 years old and older had a significantly
increased risk of stroke compared to the women younger than 55 years
old. That means women who are diabetic should take very good care of
themselves so as to prevent stroke which is one of the complications
of diabetes.