Comparison of secondary prevention care after myocardial infarction and stroke

Background: Whether secondary prevention of atherosclerosis is performed as frequently after cerebrovascular events ( stroke or transient ischemic attack) as after cardiac events ( myocardial infarction or angina) is unknown. Methods: We compared the receipt of six secondary preventive care processes among 943 persons with a prior cardiac event to that among 523 persons with a prior cerebrovascular event using a representative sample of the US population. Results: The cardiac event group had higher rates for three care processes: antithrombotic medication use in the past year (83-77%, p = 0.01), ever advised to exercise more (66-52%, p < 0.001), and ever advised to eat fewer high-fat or high-cholesterol foods ( 70-54%, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Compared to the cardiac event group, the quality of care of the cerebrovascular event group is lower and should be improved.