Background

Impact of stroke

Regardless of treatment advances, stroke remains a devastating disease, a leading cause of morbidity and mortality, and one of the most expensive diseases to treat.
As the population ages, the economic burden of stroke is expected to increase.
Statistics analyzing health outcomes after stroke vary – it has been estimated that 29% of individuals who experience a stroke die within a year, with 20% dying within three months; 25% becoming dependent; and 46% remaining independent (Hankey & Warlow, 1999).
Stroke is one of the most costly medical conditions, accounting for a significant portion of overall Canadian healthcare dollars and costing the Canadian economy $2.7 billion annually (HSFO, 2002b).

Stroke is the fourth leading cause of death in Canada, with approximately 7% of all deaths attributable to stroke (Wilson et al., 2001).
Although stroke is an increasingly treatable disease, the residual disability attributable to stroke remains significant.

It is estimated that 14,863 individuals were hospitalized for stroke in Ontario in 2000 (Canadian Institute for Health Information, 2002).