A Neurology study of 2,076 first-ever strokes in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky found rates among adults ages 20–54 rose from 33.9 per 100,000 person-years in 1993–94 to 62.2 in 2020. Rates among older adults fell from 618.8 to 453.0.
Most of the increase came from ischemic strokes, in which a clot blocks a blood vessel in the brain: their rate rose from 23.8 to 47.3 per 100,000 person-years. Researchers found no similar increases in other stroke types.
The study did not examine why rates rose. Experts cited rising hypertension, diabetes and atrial fibrillation, as well as obesity, sedentary lifestyles and substance use, as possible contributors; the research does not establish a cause. One expert said increased marijuana use among stroke patients does not prove marijuana caused strokes.
