NEW ORLEANS — What do mammograms, blood-sugar tests and daytime dozing have in common? All may offer clues that someone is headed for a stroke, new studies suggest.
Higher stroke risk was seen in women with artery buildups accidentally revealed by mammograms, in non-diabetics starting to have insulin problems, and in older people who tend to nod off a lot.
People should not panic if they have one of those signs. But if grandma falls asleep in front of the TV all the time, it may be worth checking to see whether she has a sleep disorder raising her risk of stroke, doctors say.
Likewise, a test that rules out breast cancer may give a valuable clue to heart disease and stroke risks — if radiologists report the findings to women and their doctors for follow-up.
“You’re getting information in two important areas,” but people often focus on just the cancer risk, said Dr. Philip Gorelick, neurology chief at the University of Illinois in Chicago.
Gorelick is chairman of the International Stroke Conference, a medical meeting in New Orleans, where the studies were presented Thursday.
