Epidemiology of stroke in Europe and trends for the 21st century

Despite major improvements in primary prevention and acute treatment over the last decades, stroke is still a devastating disease. At the beginning of the 21st century, the age-standardized incidence of stroke in Europe ranged from 95 to 290/100,000 per year, with one-month case-fatality rates ranging from 13 to 35%. Approximately 1.1 million inhabitants of Europe suffered a stroke each year, and ischemic stroke accounted for approximately 80% of cases. Although global stroke incidence is declining, rates observed in young adults are on the rise, thus suggesting a need for strategies to improve prevention. In addition, because of the ageing population, the absolute number of stroke is expected to dramatically increase in coming years: by 2025, 1.5 million European people will suffer a stroke each year. Beyond vital prognosis, stroke patients are also at increased risk of poor outcome within the first year of the event including re-hospitalisation (33%), recurrent event (7 to 13%), dementia (7 to 23%) mild cognitive disorder (35 to 47%), depression (30 to 50%), and fatigue (35% to 92%), all of them contributing to affect health related quality of life. Given these observations, an urgent development of acute care provision, as well as resources for post-stroke therapeutic strategies, is needed.In this issueStroke at the beginning of the XXIst centuryS. Timsit, FranceEpidemiology of stroke in Europe and trends for the 21st centuryY. Béjot, H. Bailly, J. Durier, M. Giroud, FranceHow is stroke care organised in Europe?V. Arnao, P. Nemanja, V. Caso, ItalyUp-date on specificities of stroke in womenH. Christensen, L. Bentsen, L. Christensen, DenmarkManagement of spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhagesB. Casolla, R. Tortuyaux, C. Cordonnier, FranceCerebral venous thrombosisJ.M. Ferro, P. Canhao, D. Aguiar de Sousa, PortugalManagement of acute cerebral ischaemiaS. Moulin, D. Leys, FranceStroke preventionC. Isabel, D. Calvet, J.L. Mas, France