During 1977 to 1985 2008 patients suffering from acute ischemic cerebral infarcts were admitted to the Department of Neurology, Giessen University. 213 (10.6%) died during their stay at hospital of 28 days in average. Time of survival, cause of death, localization and etiology of the infarcts were evaluated retrospectively on base of the medical reports, the angiographic, doppler-sonographic, computerized tomographic, and autopsy findings. The same number of patients died because of direct sequelae of stroke and secondary complications respectively. Those with supratentorial infarcts, who died in consequence of a vegetative dysregulation generally did not survive the first week after ictus, often had infarcts exceeding the supply area of one large cerebral artery and frequently had evidence of cardiac embolism. Pathogenetic factors for extension of the ischemic cerebral damage subsequently causing transtentorial herniation were spreading thrombosis, reinfarction, and fatal secondary hemorrhage. Patients dying in consequence of an infratentorial infarct often had a thrombosis of the basilar artery or a large cerebellar infarction. Secondary fatal complications mostly occurred after the first week after stroke. Pulmonary edema, pulmonary embolism and myocardial infarction predominated with different time pattern.