Difference in stroke incidence between Korean and Japanese patients initiating dialysis — era or ethnic effect?

We thank Tomoyuki Kawada for the letter in response to our recent article [1]. First, we would like to focus on the differences in epidemiologic characteristics of stroke between our study population and those enrolled in a previous study conducted in Japan [2]. As indicated, the main difference in the findings between the two studies was that the proportion of hemorrhagic stroke among the total stroke events was substantially higher in the Japanese study than in our study (52% vs. 21%). Although the definite reasons for this difference remain uncertain, adding to the possible association kindly suggested by Kawada, some supplementary explanations have been extrapolated from previous studies in the general population not receiving dialysis treatment.

Source: International Journal of Cardiology - September 18, 2015 Category: Cardiology Authors: Hyunwook Kim, Dong-Ryeol Ryu Tags: Correspondence Source Type: research