Many countries are struggling to improve their existing health care services and in creating and maintaining balance in cost, quality, and access to health care. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a large country that occupies a total land area of 2250000 km2, and population exceeds 32 million, is struggling like many other nations to improve its existing health care facilities countrywide to control the escalating costs and to provide quality care to its citizens. Stroke is considered one of the most common type of cerebrovascular disease that occurs in adults and leads to permanent disability and high mortality rate globally. It is one of the most common cause of death in developing countries. Stroke became a major problem and a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in KSA. Data available on incidence, prevalence, and socio-demographic parameters of stroke in KSA is still deficient as compared to the developed countries; due to the lack of appropriate findings being con- ducted/reported in the kingdom. Also, since very few specialized research medical institutes exist in KSA, there is lack of comprehensive studies on medical facilities and practices for this clinical service. This review article focuses on various aspects of stroke in KSA from the studies that have been published recently covering different issues of stroke in different regions of the kingdom which might be very helpful for the health care providers to set up and make primary prevention strategies and proper allocation of health resources in order to improve stroke care.
Key words: Cerebrovascular diseases, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Stroke
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