UT-H Researchers Studying Strokes in Hispanic Population

Led by Dr. Lewis Morgenstern, researchers at The University of Texas-Houston Medical School are launching a study in Nueces County to determine the incidence of stroke in the Hispanic population.

Stroke and its complications cost the United States $40 million a year. While research into its causes and cures is ongoing, little research has focused on the relationship between Hispanics and stroke. Recognizing this, the National Institutes of Health has awarded Dr. Morgenstern a five-year, $2.5 million grant to carry out his project called Brain Attack Surveillance in Corpus Christi (BASIC). BASIC will seek to discover whether Mexican-Americans have a higher stroke attack rate than non-Hispanic whites.

"Past studies using vital statistics alone have suggested that Hispanic-Americans are relatively protected from stroke compared with non-Hispanic whites," says Dr. Morgenstern, assistant professor of neurology and epidemiology, and principal investigator of the BASIC study. "However, risk factor profiles including a higher prevalence of diabetes in Hispanic-Americans would suggest the opposite relationship."

UT-Houston researchers are expecting to find that access to health care, acculturation and lifestyles are contributing to a higher stroke rate among Mexican-Americans.

Corpus Christi was chosen as the site for the study primarily because its stable population of approximately 300,000 residents is almost equally divided between Mexican-Americans and non-Hispanic whites.

A combination of active and passive surveillance methods will be used. All cases of stroke presenting at one of the six acute care hospitals in Corpus Christi or occurring at one of the 12 nursing homes in the community will be surveyed. Data from physicians' offices will also be analyzed.

"The data we collect will provide critical information necessary for planning health care intervention strategies for the nation's fastest growing minority population," says Dr. Morgenstern.

Dr. Morgenstern says his team expects approximately 1,560 validated cases of stroke and transient ischemic attacks during the intense data acquisition phase.

Mortality rates in hospitalized and nursing home stroke patients will also be investigated.

The data collection phase of the study will take three years. Analysis of the data will then take place at UT-Houston.

---

©2006 Texas Medical Center

---

E-Mail: tmc-info@tmc.edu
URL: http://www.tmc.edu/tmcnews/11_15_99/page_06.html