Key result
Incident ischemic stroke linked to a ~2-year reduction in life expectancy versus the general U.S. population.
Why the study?
Existing post-stroke survival evidence is limited by older data, lack of long-term follow-up, and limited data on the Latinx population despite their disproportionate stroke burden.
Incident ischemic stroke significantly shortens life expectancy by over 2 years, with comparable post-stroke survival between Mexican Americans and non-Hispanic whites.
Stroke shortens life expectancy by ~2 years; extends survival data to Mexican Americans and reinforces secondary prevention priorities.
Introduction: Monitoring life expectancy after stroke is critical for evaluating health system success in treating stroke. Previous studies indicate that post-stroke survival has improved over time. However, several limitations exist in the current evidence including the age of data used, a lack of data on the Latinx population, which faces a disproportionate stroke burden, and a lack of long-term follow-up. We measured life expectancy after an incident ischemic stroke among Mexican Americans and non-Hispanic whites over a recent period. Methods: Data was from the long-running Brain Attack Surveillance in Corpus Christi (BASIC) Project. The sample included 2,011 Mexican Americans and 1,262 non-Hispanic whites who had an incident ischemic stroke during 2005-2013. Data on deaths was available through 2022. Discrete-time logistic regressions accounting for repeated measures via generalized estimating equations and life table techniques were used. We estimated life expectancy over a 10-year follow-up period. The 2010 U.S. life table was used to compare life expectancies estimated in this study with that of the general U.S. population. Results: Mean age at incident stroke was 69 years and 49% of participants were women. In men, an incident stroke at age 70 was associated with a life expectancy of 6.38 years (95% CI=6.09, 6.63) in Mexican Americans and 6.53 years (95% CI=6.19, 6.89) in non-Hispanic whites over 10 years (Fig 1). In the U.S. population of men, 10-year life expectancy at age 70 was 8.58 years; thus, incident stroke was associated with an approximate reduction in life expectancy of 2.1 years. In women, corresponding estimates were 6.65 years (95% CI=6.32, 6.93) in Mexican Americans and 6.82 years (95% CI=6.50, 7.17) in non-Hispanic whites, about 2.2 to 2.3 years lower compared to the U.S. population of women (8.99 years). No appreciable differences in post-stroke life expectancy were detected between Mexican American and non-Hispanic whites at ages 50 and 60 in men or women (Fig 2). In women, for an incident stroke at age 80, Mexican Americans had a life expectancy disadvantage (4.29 [95% CI=3.98, 4.61] vs. 4.94 [95% CI=4.61, 5.30] years). Comorbidities, education, BMI, and smoking did not change the magnitude of ethnic differences in the odds of dying. Conclusions: Incident ischemic stroke remains associated with substantial life shortening effects. Post-stroke life expectancy did not differ between Mexican Americans and non-Hispanic whites.
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Mehta et al. (2026) studied this question. Incident ischemic stroke is associated with a life expectancy reduction of approximately 2.1 years in men and 2.2 to 2.3 years in women compared to the general U.S. population.
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