ABSTRACT
359 consecutive patients with stroke admitted to the neurology department of Kerman University of Medical Sciences between May 1992 and May 1994 were interviewed within 1 week after admission to the hospital, and their medical records were examined. Detailed history was studies and clinical examinations were performed in all patients and outcomes were recorded. Of the 359 patients studied there were 165 [45.9%] males, and 292 [81.3%] patients had no formal schooling and 67 [18.7%] had some education. Mean [stamdard deviation [SD]] age was 65.4 [12.1] years for men and 63.3 [14.3] years for women. 62.2% of strokes were due to cerebral infarction and 21% due to intracerebral hemorrhage. In 10.4% of the cases, subarachnoid hemorrhage was ascertained as the cause of the stroke; while in 6.4% of the cases, the type of stroke could not be specified with certainty. The diagnosis was based on computed tomography in 93.6% of stroke cases. Hemiplegia was the prominent neurological deficit resulting from insult. The presenting symptoms were hemiparesis or hemiplegia in 79.6%, speech disorder in 38.0% and clouded consciousness in 21.2% of the patients. 63.3% of stroke cases had hypertension. 65.8% had hypercholesterolemia shortly after onset. 16.3% had diabetes mellitus. The overall case-fatality rate at the time of discharge was 24.7%. The rate for intracerebral hemorrhage was 33.6% and for cerebral infarction was 20.3%. The age-gender-adjusted mean annual incidence of stroke in men and women was estimated to be 44.4 and 59.0 per 100.000 population respectively