Cerebrovascular Disease in the Bi-Racial Population of Evans County, Georgia

An epidemiological study was made of cerebrovascular disease in a bi-racial Southern community. The study population comprised about 3,000 men and women aged 15 to 75 years at the time of entry into the study. During the 87-month period between the initial and second examinations, 94 persons developed their first cerebrovascular event. The incidence of stroke among white men (4.77/1,000/year) was almost four times that in white women and more than twice that reported for white men in other sections of the country. The incidence rates of stroke in Negro men and women were equal (5.8/1,000/year). The risk factors predisposing to stroke in white men appeared to be severe hypertension, obesity, high hematocrit levels, and antecedent electrocardiographical abnormalities These factors were not as prominent among the other race-sex groups. The high incidence of cerebrovascular disease found in this semirural population of Georgia supports previous reports of increased mortality rates for stroke in this section of the country and represents a unique situation, the exact cause for which remains to be determined.