Background

cerebrovascular disease represents the most common health problem related to neurological care, it is important to study it in different contexts and from different approaches.

Objective

to describe epidemiological and clinical variables’ behavior in patients admitted for stroke.

Methods

descriptive and cross-sectional study, carried out in Arnaldo Milián Castro Hospital’s Neurology service from Villa Clara, Cuba, which included all patients with a clinical diagnosis of cardioembolic or atherothrombotic stroke, admitted to the ward during 2019. The information was obtained from the medical records stored in the Hospital Archive; and it was processed in the statistical package SPSS. v. 21. A descriptive statistical analysis was applied, in a frequency distribution.

Results

female patients predominated (51.6%). There was a higher incidence in men older than 79 years (47.7%), and in women older than 70 (86.0%). In 67.3% the cardioembolic cause was demonstrated. Arterial hypertension was the main associated risk factor (83.6%). The motor defect was observed as the most frequent clinical finding on admission (96.7%). Hemorrhagic transformation of the infarct and nosocomial bronchopneumonia were identified as the main neurological and non-neurological complications, respectively. Patients discharged alive prevailed (68.6%).

Conclusions

ischemic strokes are more frequent in elderly patients; early identification and timely management of the established disease can largely prevent the appearance of complications, and consequently death.

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