Etiology of and risk factors for cerebral infarction in young adults in western Norway: a population‐based case‐control study

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Abstract
We sought to study the etiology of and risk factors for cerebral infarction in young adults in Hordaland County, Norway. All patients aged 15–49 years living in Hordaland County with a first‐ever cerebral infarction during 1988–97 were included. Etiology was analyzed in subgroups defined by sex, age ( 2]. A questionnaire was used to evaluate possible risk factors amongst the patients compared with an age‐ and sex‐matched control group. The distribution of etiology was significantly different in all subgroups. Atherosclerosis was frequent amongst men (22.8% vs. 4.2%) and patients 40 years (20.8% vs. 2.7%). All patients with microangiopathy had favorable short‐term outcome. Significant risk factors were smoking more than 15 cigarettes per day (P < 0.001), hypertension (P = 0.001), and myocardial infarction (P = 0.035). Modifiable risk factors were frequent.