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Burden of Stroke in Europe: An Analysis of the Global Burden of Disease Study Findings From 2010 to 2019

and on behalf of GBD Collaborators Study Group
Originally published22 Jan 2024https://doi.org/10.1161/STROKEAHA.122.042022Stroke. 2024;55:432–442

    Abstract

    BACKGROUND:

    While most European Regions perform well in global comparisons, large discrepancies within stroke epidemiological parameters exist across Europe. The objective of this analysis was to evaluate the stroke burden across European regions and countries in 2019 and its difference to 2010.

    METHODS:

    The GBD 2019 analytical tools were used to evaluate regional and country-specific estimates of incidence, prevalence, deaths, and disability-adjusted life years of stroke for the European Region as defined by the World Health Organization, with its 53 member countries (EU-53) and for European Union as defined in 2019, with its 28 member countries (EU-28), between 2010 and 2019. Results were analyzed at a regional, subregional, and country level.

    RESULTS:

    In EU-53, the absolute number of incident and prevalent strokes increased by 2% (uncertainty interval [UI], 0%–4%), from 1 767 280 to 1 802 559 new cases, and by 4% (UI, 3%–5%) between 2010 and 2019, respectively. In EU-28, the absolute number of prevalent strokes and stroke-related deaths increased by 4% (UI, 2%–5%) and by 6% (UI, 1%–10%), respectively. All-stroke age-standardized mortality rates, however, decreased by 18% (UI, −22% to −14%), from 82 to 67 per 100 000 people in the EU-53, and by 15% (UI, −18% to −11%), from 49.3 to 42.0 per 100 000 people in EU-28. Despite most countries presenting reductions in age-adjusted incidence, prevalence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life year rates, these rates remained 1.4×, 1.2×, 1.6×, and 1.7× higher in EU-53 in comparison to the EU-28.

    CONCLUSIONS:

    EU-53 showed a 2% increase in incident strokes, while they remained stable in EU-28. Age-standardized rates were consistently lower for all-stroke burden parameters in EU-28 in comparison to EU-53, and huge discrepancies in incidence, prevalence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life-year rates were observed between individual countries.

    Footnotes

    This manuscript was sent to Jean-Claude Baron, Guest Editor, for review by expert referees, editorial decision, and final disposition.

    *C.F. Prendes and B. Rantner contributed equally.

    †A list of GBD Collaborators is given in the Appendix with full information in the Supplemental Material.

    For Sources of Funding and Disclosures, see page 441.

    Supplemental Material is available at https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/suppl/10.1161/STROKEAHA.122.042022.
    Correspondence to: Carlota F. Prendes, MD, PhD, Department of Vascular Surgery, Ludwig Maximilians University, Marchioninistraße 15, 81377, Germany. Email

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