Incidents and Patterns of Cerebral Ischemia in Benghazi-Libya

Introduction: Cerebral ischemia is leading cause of mortality worldwide. The incidence of cerebral ischemia has increased in the Middle East during the last decades. However, there is a lack of data regarding the incidence and patterns of stroke in the Libya. Objective: The main objective of this study is to measure the incidents and pattern of cerebral ischemia in Benghazi, Libya. Methods: Retrospective study included cerebrovascular accident (CVA) patients admitted to Al-Hawari hospital during the period (2011-2013) and in Benghazi Medical Center admitted during period the (2014-2019).31 patients of both sexes were included in this study. Results and discussion: According to this study, 67.7% of the study samples were males and 32.3% were females. The highest percentages of patients were above 50 years old. The most common potential risk factors were hypertension (80%) followed by diabetes (48%) and old CVA (42%). The majority of patients suffered right side weakness (45%), left side weakness (29%) and mouth deviation (16%). Aspirin and Simvastatin were the most commonly used drugs among the study sample. Conclusion: This study showed that the incidence of cerebral ischemia increases with age in both sexes. Men were more exposed to cerebral ischemia than women. The predominant risk factor was Hypertension followed by diabetes mellitus and old CVA. Management of hypertension and life style modification is important to reduce the risk of cerebral ischemia.