Researchers used population databases to identify more than 4,300 patients with blood cultures positive for Escherichia coli, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Streptococcus aureus, other bacteria and fungi. Those with community-acquired bacteremia were nearly 21 times more likely to have a stroke or heart attack between zero and 30 days after hospital admission.
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If these results are generalizable across populations, it is possible between 5 percent and 10 percent of strokes and heart attacks in the U.S. — between 30,000 and 40,000 each — occur because of systemic complications stemming from infection, according to an article from Medscape.
Researchers concluded more work is necessary to understand the mechanisms through which infection may increase susceptibility to stroke and heart attack.
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