The rate of stroke in individuals with no history of prior stroke, was 34 percent higher in individuals who experienced at least one head injury than in their peers with no head injury.  The rate is even higher in those who had multiple head injuries, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine published recently in the journal Stroke, Penn Medicine reports.

“Head injuries increase the risk of stroke in individuals who may not have had one otherwise,” said the study’s first author Holly C. Elser, MD, PhD, a resident in the department of Neurology.  “This research adds to the growing list of conditions associated with head injury, and underscores the importance of preventing them through wearing bike helmets and seatbelts in order to minimize the long-term health risks.” 

As part of the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study, this longitudinal analysis evaluated 30 years of data from over 13,000 community-dwelling individuals—those not hospitalized or living in nursing home facilities—to determine if head injury has an impact on rates of stroke caused by a blood clot in the brain, called an ischemic stroke. Individuals who had a stroke prior to a head injury were excluded from the data set.

The head injuries ranged from mild concussion to skull fracture and other severe head trauma.  

Individuals with multiple head injuries in the study had even higher rates of ischemic stroke.

The authors also found that head injuries were more strongly associated with more severe stroke.