Stroke incidence, mortality and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) trends in association with air pollution, dietary and metabolic risk factors in Gulf Cooperation Council countries

OBJECTIVES: To identify the primary risk factors contributing to stroke incidents and deaths, analyzing the trends and changes in regional stroke statistics between 1990 and 2021 in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. METHODS: This longitudinal time trend study was conducted in the Department of Physiology, College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from June to August 2024. The data were recorded from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) and the Global Burden of Diseases (GBD) datasets. The incidence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life year (DALY) rates of stroke in the GCC countries, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and their association with environmental pollution, dietary, and metabolic risk factors were documented from 1990 to 2021. RESULTS: From 1990 to 2021, the GCC countries exhibited varied trends in stroke incidence, mortality and DALYs. The UAE had the highest stroke incidence rate in 2021 (106.01 per 100,000). The mortality rates due to stroke decreased in the GCC, except in Kuwait, where they increased by 14.4%. DALYs decreased in GCC countries, with the highest decline in Qatar (56%). Qatar experienced a 59.9% decrease in death rates and a 53.4% reduction in DALYs for hypertension. CONCLUSION: In GCC countries, hypertension, air pollution, and dietary factors are dominant risk factors for stroke, stroke-related deaths, and DALY rates. The UAE had the highest stroke incidence rate in 2021. However, mortality rates decreased in all GCC countries except Kuwait.