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Findings from REGARDS

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Findings from REGARDS have been widely published in scientific journals and presented at research conferences.Click on this link to see a current listing of REGARDS papers.

 
REGARDS made the news recently with presentations at the American Heart Association International Stroke Conference in February 2010 in San Antonio.
 
 
We know from other studies that people in the South and African-Americans have more stroke deaths. At this conference, REGARDS scientists provided the first national data describing racial and regional differences in stroke incidence. They found that more strokes occurred among blacks, men, older persons, and those living in the “stroke belt” – the states of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee and Mississippi, with the highest stroke rate in the coastal areas of Georgia, North and South Carolina.  This information is important because it suggests that one of the reasons why African-Americans and southerners have more stroke deaths may be that they have more strokes.
 
The other presentation was about atrial fibrillation, the most common heart rhythm disorder in the United States. Treating atrial fibrillation can help present stroke. REGARDS scientists found that African-Americans were less likely to know they had atrial fibrillation. African-Americans with atrial fibrillation were also less likely to be treated with a blood thinning medication called warfarin that is commonly used to treat the disorder. Warfarin may not be the best treatment for everyone with atrial fibrillation, though.  These findings suggest that lower awareness of atrial fibrillation and lower likelihood of being treated for this disorder may explain why there are more strokes in blacks.  
 
 
 
We have had other news stories based on findings from REGARDS – this section is currently under development