Prevalence of stroke in Bangladesh: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Stroke is a major health concern in Bangladesh due to its high incidence and effect on rates of morbidity and death. The morbidity due to stroke in Bangladesh is indeed increasing. This study aimed to find the pooled prevalence of stroke in Bangladesh. Methods: An extensive search was conducted using PubMed, MEDLINE, and Google Scholar databases. I2 and Qtests were employed to evaluate the heterogeneity. A random-effects model and subgroup analysis were performed due to the significant heterogeneity. We used Egger's test and funnel plot to look at publication bias. Meta-regression was carried out to analyze how different study variables influenced the effect estimates and to explore sources of heterogeneity across studies. The GRADE approach was used to evaluate the overall quality of the evidence, and the Joanna Briggs Institute tool was used to assess the risk of bias. Sensitivity analysis was conducted to evaluate the robustness of the meta-analysis results. STATA version 17 was used for analysis. Results: We selected eleven (n = 1577293) studies that met the inclusion criteria for the final synthesis. In Bangladesh, the overall pooled prevalence of stroke was 1.10 % (95 % CI: 0.70-1.51). Subgroup analysis showed that the prevalence of stroke was 1.14 % (95 % CI: 0.58-1.70) from 2005 to 2014 and 1.04 % (95 % CI: 0.40-1.68) from 2015 to 2024. Conclusion: Stroke prevalence in Bangladesh is significantly high. The country's healthcare system faces adequate stroke prevention and treatment challenges. Improving healthcare services and public health education are crucial to addressing this increasing public health issue.