ISCHAEMIC CEREBROVASCULAR DISEASE IN YOUNG ADULTS: 1. Smoking habits, use of oral contraceptives, relative weight, blood pressure and electrocardiographic findings

Various characteristics of 128 men and 85 women, less than 50 years old and suffering from ischaemic cerebrovascular disease, were analysed. Cigarette smoking was 1.5 times as common in men and 3 times as common in women as in an average Finnish population of the same age. The prevalence of the use of oral contraceptive at the time of the cerebrovascular accident was 2.5 times as high as for women of childbearing age in South Finland. The average relative weight of men and women did not differ from the “ideal weight” of the Finnish population, but overweight persons (more than 110 % of the ideal weight) were twice as numerous as underweight persons (less than 90 % of the ideal weight). Hypertension was in men, about 2.5 times and in women, 1.5 times as frequent as in a large Finnish population study but these prevalences must be regarded as underestimates because hospitalization tends to reduce blood pressure values. Electrocardiographic abnormalities were encountered frequently. Compared with the results of a population study for men in the 40-49 years age group Q-waves were encountered 7.5 times as frequently, S-T depression 12 times, T-wave negativity 4 times and tall R-waves twice as frequently. It seems that cigarette smoking, use of oral contraceptives, hypertension and electrocardiographic abnormalities are associated with increased risk of cerebrovascular disease in young persons. The role of overweight is obscure.