Preventive Measures Pay Off for Those at Risk of Stroke

Taking steps to reduce smoking, high cholesterol, diabetes saves lives, study finds

TUESDAY, July 17 (HealthDay News) -- Helping patients avoid stroke and dementia risk factors, such as high cholesterol, smoking and diabetes, can leave them with a longer, healthier old age, a new study finds.

Researchers in Germany also found that by following recommended treatment guidelines and goals, fewer patients at high risk for stroke and dementia will need expensive long-term care.

"Primary prevention pays off," the study's lead author, Horst Bickel, senior researcher in the department of psychiatry at the Technical University of Munich, said in a news release from the American Heart Association. "We found that not only the risk of long-term care dependence was lower, but also that death rates decreased."