A stroke is a medical emergency that happens when blood flow to the brain is cut off. They’re typically associated with older adults, especially those over 65. But health care providers are seeing more strokes among younger patients.
Dr. Leo Odle is the associate medical director at Optum Primary Care in Gilbert. He says there’s been an increase in strokes in younger adults since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“COVID brought about a much more sedentary lifestyle that I don't think our young people have recovered from. A sedentary lifestyle leads to high cholesterol, it leads to obesity, it leads to sleep apnea — all of which are risk factors for stroke," Odle said.
Another contributing factor, he said, is “the rising use of illicit drugs, and especially stimulants, methamphetamine in particular, has been associated with strokes.”
A 2024 report by the Centers for Disease Control found one of the most notable increases in stroke prevalence was among 18 to 44 year olds.
-
Prescribing abortion medications via telehealth was previously banned by a state law. But a court ruling in February voided that, and several other abortion regulations in Arizona. -
The annual Kids Count Data Book ranks states in categories of health, family and community, education, and economic well-being. Arizona ranked 40th out of 50 states for overall child wellbeing. -
A new initiative aimed at providing gynecologic and reproductive health care to queer individuals is launching later this year. -
The Arizona Attorney General’s Office is suing nine health insurance providers, accusing them of colluding with an AI-driven technology platform to drive down payments to healthcare providers while inflating out-of-pocket costs for some patients. -
A hantavirus case in Mohave County was from a different strain than the Andes strain that caused deaths on a cruise ship. The strain in the Arizona case is not known for person-to-person transmission.
