Overview
- About 120,000 strokes occur in Spain each year, and stroke is the leading cause of death in women and the second in men according to national patient groups and neurologists.
- Neurologists stress that stroke is time sensitive and that every minute counts because delays sharply reduce the chance of a good recovery.
- If patients do not follow treatment and control risk factors after a stroke the risk of recurrence is high, rising from roughly 10% in the week after an event to about 25% at five years and 40% at ten years.
- Local stroke services show heavy demand—for example the HUA Txagorritxu unit treats about 850 patients a year—while patients and families report that hospital discharges often lack coordinated follow‑up, clear rehabilitation plans, and guidance on disability support.
- Researchers are testing new antithrombotic drugs that target coagulation factor XI and clinicians are urging personalised risk control as concern grows about more strokes in younger adults tied to poorer self‑care