Stroke, first cause of disability in Italy: more attention to the recovery of functionality

Every year, in Italy, there are 185,000 people affected by a stroke, a neurological event that occurs with the occlusion or rupture of one of the cerebral arteries and which in 75% of cases causes disability, while in 20-30% it causes death within a month and 40-50% within a year. Among patients who have some form of disability, 50% report a loss of self-sufficiency, linked to severe spasticity, paralysis, difficulty of expression and language. Today the attention to the post-event, with the recovery of functionality, has increased, also thanks to dedicated campaigns such as Strike on stroke of ISA-AII, but the most powerful weapon remains prevention. On the occasion of the European Stroke Awareness Day (which took place on 9 May), the Italian Stroke Association renews its invitation to improve the lifestyles of the population.

More attention after the event

Stroke affects people over the age of 45 in 95% of cases, it is not a disease of the elderly as it is mistakenly thought. Of these, 150,000 are new cases, 35,000 recurrences. In Italy there are about 913,000 patients who survived, many of them with disabling results. “Like ISA-AII – he explains Mauro Silvestrini, ISA-AII president – we are working to increase attention to the post-event, with the aim of allowing the recovery of disabilities, but it is essential to insist on the importance of prevention. It is not possible to reduce the risk to zero, but we can greatly affect the number of people affected. Stroke also weighs on the budgets of health systems, with costs, on European soil, estimated at up to 60 billion euros, with an increase forecast of up to 86 billion by 2040”.

Focus on prevention

It is great, therefore, the attention to primary prevention is today among our main objectives. “To spread the importance of correct lifestyles among the population – he underlines Paula Santalucia, ISA-AII president-elect – a strong awareness operation on correctable risk factors is needed. For example, to reduce the possibility of stroke it is essential to stop smoking, not consume excessive alcohol, maintain a balanced diet and exercise. Furthermore, numerous conditions and pathologies favor its onset, including hypertension, obesity, diabetes mellitus and various heart diseases. It doesn’t take much to stay healthy, but punctual checks, in case of problems like these, are necessary”.

A commitment from Europe

In 2018, the European Stroke Organization launched the Stroke Action Plan for Europe project, with the aim of achieving concrete results by 2030 in terms of improving stroke assistance, prevention, acute event management and assistance to patients with post-event disabilities. “We ask the governments of the various countries – he adds Simon Sacco, ESO President Elect – to sign a commitment document to guarantee essential services and to monitor how these services are implemented in the various areas. Today the Declaration was signed by 10 countries throughout Europe and it is hoped that Italy will soon be able to join, as a gesture of closeness and formal commitment of the institutions. Greater attention is needed to primary prevention, with faster recognition of risk factors, pathways dedicated to patients with particular clinical indications and an increase in investment in research”.

The European Stroke Action Plan

Precisely on the occasion of the European Day of 2021, the Declaration of Action on the disease was launched, to improve the prevention, treatment and care of stroke for Italian citizens, part of the Stroke Action Plan for Europe. “Objective of the Plan – he concludes Francesca Romana Pezzella, ISA-AII Secretary and co-chair Stroke Action Plan for Europe (SAP-E) of ESO, European Stroke Organization – is to develop the entire stroke care pathway, from early prevention and treatment, to post- therapy. At the moment we are awaiting the Minister’s signature, it could significantly change the approach to stroke and its prevention”.