Harvard study warns alcohol significantly raises risk of deadly stroke

By Stephen Beech

Drinkers who down three or more pints or glasses of wine a day raise their risk of the deadliest form of stroke, warns new research.

Heavy drinkers are more likely to have a severe stroke at a younger age and are also three times more likely to show signs of brain aging, say scientists.

The study found that people who down three or more alcoholic drinks a day - classed as "heavy drinkers" - are likely to suffer a bleeding stroke 11 years earlier than people who are not heavy drinkers.

Researchers also found that people who regularly had three or more alcoholic drinks per day were more likely to experience "intracerebral haemorrhage" - a type of stroke caused by bleeding in the brain, at a younger age and with greater severity than non-heavy drinkers.

The sobering findings, published in the journal Neurology, also show that heavy drinkers were more likely to show signs of cerebral small vessel disease, which is damage to small blood vessels in the brain and a type of long-term brain damage.

Study lead author Dr. Edip Gurol, of Harvard University, said: “Intracerebral haemorrhage is the most deadly type of stroke with cerebral small vessel disease being its leading cause.

“While heavy drinking has been linked in previous studies to an increased risk of stroke, our findings suggest that it doesn’t just increase the severity of a bleeding stroke; it may also accelerate long-term harm to the brain’s small vessels.”

The study included 1,600 adults with an average age of 75 who were hospitalised for intracerebral haemorrhage.

Information on alcohol use was provided during hospital admission, either by the patient or a person with them at the hospital.

Researchers defined heavy alcohol use as regularly drinking three or more alcoholic drinks per day with one drink having the equivalent to 14 grams, or 0.6 ounces, of alcohol. One UK unit of alcohol is eight grams.

Of the study participants, 104 people (7%) met the criteria for heavy alcohol use.

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Participants underwent brain scans to assess the severity of their strokes and to look for signs of cerebral small vessel disease.

The research team then compared heavy drinkers to participants who drank fewer than three drinks a day or not at all.

They found heavy drinkers suffered a stroke at an average age of 64 compared to an average age of 75 for non-heavy drinkers—an 11-year difference.

Heavy drinkers also suffered brain bleeds that were 70% larger on average.

Dr. Gurol said heavy drinkers were twice as likely to have bleeding in deep brain regions, and nearly twice as likely to experience bleeding that spread into the brain’s fluid-filled spaces, a complication called intraventricular extension.

Hel said the findings typically indicate "poorer recovery and health outcomes" among people who had brain bleeds.

Heavy drinkers were also more than three times as likely to show severe signs of white matter damage - called white matter hyperintensities - that are usually caused by cerebral small vessel disease.

They were also nearly twice as likely to have a pattern of cerebral small vessel disease that reflects chronic damage caused by high blood pressure.

Dr. Gurol says they also had lower blood platelet counts and slightly higher blood pressure on hospital admission than non-heavy drinkers, factors that may also contribute to stroke severity and how well a person recovers.

He said: “Reducing heavy alcohol use may not only lower a person’s risk of bleeding stroke, it may also slow the progression of cerebral small vessel disease, which in turn may reduce the chances of having another stroke, cognitive decline and long-term disability."

He added: “Promoting lifestyle changes like quitting alcohol should be part of stroke prevention efforts, especially for those at higher risk.”