Smoking, high BP leads to bleeding stroke

Sydney, Mar 11: Smoking and high blood pressure are already known to increase the risk of a heart disease but new research now states that the two, when combined, dramatically increase the risk of a blood vessel bursting inside the brain. According to Australian researchers, smokers with high blood pressure were more likely to suffer from a hemorrhagic stroke than non-smokers with blood pressure problems.

The research, published by the American Heart Association, involved 563,144 people of mostly Asian descent. Lead researcher Koshi Nakamura said the revelation would result in preventing stroke by quitting smoking and lowering blood pressure than if this previously unreported interaction was ignored. A hemorrhagic stroke results in blood vessel burst that bleeds in the brain.

About half of patients die as a result, while many are left with paralysis or other crippling effects. The researchers believe smoking may damage blood vessels in the brain that are already weakened by high blood pressure. Weakened blood vessels are prone to rupture and bleeding and susceptible to hemorrhagic stroke.

UNI