Novel hypotheses to explain this need testing urgently

Censuses in 1981, 1991,1^–3 and 2001 (Wild et al. Persistence of substantial inequalities in cardiovascular disease mortality by country of birth in England and Wales 2001-2003. Unpublished manuscript). have shown that, among Bangladeshi-born men living in the United Kingdom, the standardised mortality ratio for stroke is two to three times the population average, with less marked but important excesses in Bangladeshi-born women. There has been little progress in understanding the reasons for this variation, let alone in identifying approaches to improve outcomes. Lessons learnt about stroke among British Bangladeshis may well apply to other populations at high risk, including Indians and Pakistanis, whose excess stroke mortality is not quite so high. In addition, such evidence could be highly relevant to reducing health inequalities.

Is the excess mortality from stroke in Bangladeshis explained by a higher case fatality ratio? Interim analysis of data from the south London stroke register shows no age adjusted difference in survival between Bangladeshis and white …