Stroke: key data sources

Incidence

The incidence of stroke can be estimated from the ISD linked database, by counting:

• 'new' SMR01 hospital admissions for stroke (ie records for people with no previous admission for stroke since the database started); plus
• deaths from stroke for people with no SMR01 record for stroke.

However, it is essential to understand the major limitations of this approach - these are detailed on the page reached by the link above.

Mortality

Information on deaths from stroke is collated from death registrations by the General Register Office for Scotland (GROS).

Prevalence

Information on stroke prevalence can be obtained from a number of sources such as the Scottish Health Survey 2003 (Cardiovascular disease report) and the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF). Both of these data sources provide high level estimates of prevalence.

Hospital discharge data

Statistics on discharges from hospital due to stroke are held in the Scottish Morbidity Record (SMR) databases.

Practice Team Information

The Practice Team Information (PTI) scheme provides information on the number of people who consult GP practices in Scotland and the reasons for consultations. An overview of the PTI scheme is available. Data on the patterns of consultations by age and sex and trends over time are available under the stroke heading on ISD's PTI page.