Prevalence of Cerebrovascular Accidents Among the US Population With Substance Use Disorders: A Nationwide Study

Introduction Globally, stroke is one of the top ten causes of death. The incidence of stroke in patients aged 44 years and younger was noted to have risen over the past three decades. This rise in stroke diagnosis among young adults could be attributed to multiple reasons, including the rising prevalence of comorbidities like diabetes, hypertension, substance use disorders (SUDs), etc. Aim 95% CI: 2.03-2.03], cocaine OR: 1.54; 95%CI:1.54-1.54, heroin OR: 1.83; 95%CI: 1.83-1.83, marijuana or hashish OR: 1.01; 95% CI: 1.01-1.01, were observed to have an association with higher odds of stroke than the population without a history of using these illicit drugs. Conclusion Among respondents with a history of stroke, the use of cocaine was most prevalent, followed by marijuana/hashish, heroin, e-cigarettes, and injecting illegal drugs. The odds of having a stroke were two times higher in the population using an e-cigarette and higher among those using heroin, cocaine, and marijuana/ hashish. The Government should plan policy changes to treat SUDs in the USA, which could help reduce the stroke burden. Recall that bias and geographic variations in response rate by participants of the study were the limitations of our survey-based study.