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Effects of Leisure-Time Physical Activity and Ventilatory Function on Risk for Stroke in Men: The Reykjavík Study

Uggi Agnarsson, MD; Gudmundur Thorgeirsson, MD, PhD; Helgi Sigvaldason, PhD; and Nikulas Sigfusson, MD, PhD

15 June 1999 | Volume 130 Issue 12 | Pages 987-990

Background: Stroke is a major cause of illness, death, and health expenditures. Leisure-time physical activity may reduce the risk for stroke.

Objective: To examine the association of leisure-time physical activity and pulmonary function with risk for stroke.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Setting: Reykjavík, Iceland.

Participants: 4484 men 45 to 80 years of age followed for a mean (±SD) of 10.6 ± 3.6 years.

Measurements: Patients underwent physical examination, blood sampling, and spirometry and completed a questionnaire about health and exercise. Computerized hospital records were used to identify strokes, and the Icelandic National Registry was used to identify deaths.

Results: New stroke developed in 249 men (5.6%) (hemorrhagic stroke in 44 [18%] and ischemic stroke in 205 [82%]). In a multivariable hazard analysis that controlled for known risk factors for cerebrovascular disease, leisure-time physical activity maintained after 40 years of age was associated with a reduced risk for stroke (relative risk, 0.69 [CI, 0.47 to 1.01] for total stroke and 0.62 [CI, 0.40 to 0.97] for ischemic stroke). Risk for stroke increased with diminished ventilatory function (FVC or FEV₁) (relative risk, 1.9 [CI, 1.06 to 3.25] for the lowest compared with the highest quintile).

Conclusion: Middle-aged men who participate in leisure-time physical activity and have good pulmonary function seem to have a lower risk for stroke than men who are not active or have diminished pulmonary function.

Author and Article Information

From the Icelandic Heart Association and the National University Hospital, Reykjavík, Iceland.

Requests for Reprints: Uggi Agnarsson, MD, The Heart Preventive Clinic, Lagmuli 9, 108 Reykjavík, Iceland.

Current Author Addresses: Drs. Agnarsson, Sigvaldason, and Sigfusson: The Heart Preventive Clinic, Lagmuli 9, 108 Reykjavík, Iceland.

Dr. Thorgeirsson: National University Hospital of Iceland, 101 Reykjavík, Iceland.

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