Healthcare professionals from the American Heart Association and the American Stroke Association have identified stroke risk factors and issued guidelines for stroke prevention specifically for women. The guidelines are published in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.
Certain risk factors are unique to women, such as reproductive factors like preeclampsia, oral contraceptives, menopause and hormone replacement. Additionally, obesity/metabolic syndrome, atrial fibrillation and migraine with aura are risk factors more commonly found in women, according to the guidelines.
To address these issues, researchers compiled evidence, research gaps and recommendations on stroke risk factors geared specifically toward women.
Researchers suggest a female-specific stroke risk factor score is warranted, given the differences in risks between males and females.
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