High blood pressure, smoking, obesity are known risk factors for stroke. But since several recent studies suggest that bacterial infection may play a role, doctors at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, were ___(8)___ whether antibiotics could lower stroke ___(9)___. They can. In the study, people taking any antibiotic were 20% less likely, to have a stroke than those who were antibiotic-free. Penicillin was ___(10)___ effective: patients on that drug were 47% less likely to have a stroke. The drugs are thought to slow or ___(11)___ fatty build-up in the arteries. More research is underway, and if it confirms the link, antibiotics may one day be prescribed for high-risk patients. ___(12)___, researchers warn that the medications be used sparingly to avoid the rise of drug-resistant bacteria …..