Washington, July 10 (ANI): Heavy drinking, type 1 diabetes or having a preceding infection are likely to double the risk of death in stroke patients, according to a new study.

While heart failure was associated with seven times the risk of death, active cancer malignancy was linked to sixteen-fold risk in stroke patients.

However, the overall death rate is low among the age group of 15 to 49 years, said Dr Jukka Putaala, who led the Finnish study.

According to the study, risk of death was 2.7 percent at one month, 4.7 percent at one year and 10.7 percent at five years.

Putaala suggests that detecting heavy drinking, heart failure, cancer, type 1 diabetes and preceding infection as risk factors is important as they can be modified by lifestyle changes, strictly controlled medication or medical procedures in most patients.

The findings appear in journal of American Heart Association. (ANI)