Stroke

What is Stroke?

Strokes are the third leading cause of death in the United States, affecting over 500,000 Americans every year. They usually come on suddenly, with little or no warning, and the results can be devastating.

Understanding the factors that increase the risk of a stroke and recognizing the symptoms may help you to seek the kind of early treatment and diagnosis that will improve your chances for complete recovery.

How does a stroke occur?

A stroke occurs when the normal blood supply to the brain is interrupted. This can happen in several ways. A thrombosis, or blockage in a blood vessel, or an embolism, a fatty deposit or clot which breaks loose and follows the blood stream until it lodges in a smaller vessel, can literally cause the brain the starve to death in a very few minutes by depriving it of blood.

The problem in these cases is too little blood. Too much blood in the wrong place is equally perilous. A hemorrhage, or break, in a blood vessel allows the blood to flood the brain bringing injury - and often irreversible damage - to the delicate structures of the brain.

Who is at risk for a stroke?

Although they are more common in the elderly, strokes can occur at any age.

You face increased risk of a stroke if you:

bullet

smoke

bullet

have high blood pressure

bullet

have diabetes

bullet

have a history of heart disease

bullet

have high serum cholesterol

bullet

use oral contraceptives (birth control pills)

What are the symptoms of a stroke?

The range and severity of early stroke symptoms vary considerably, but they share a common characteristic: suddenness.

Warning signs may include some or all of the following symptoms:

bullet

unusually severe headache

bullet

confusion, disorientation or memory loss

bullet

numbness, weakness or clumsiness of an arm, leg or side of the face

bullet

abnormal or slurred speech

bullet

loss of vision

bullet

poor balance or lack of coordination

About 30 percent of stroke patients have a history of transient ischemic attacks, or TIAs. These "small strokes" have basically the same symptoms, but usually subside quickly (often within a few minutes, and nearly always within 24 hours).

How are strokes being treated?

Rehabilitation following a stroke may involved a number of medical specialists; but the early diagnosis of a stroke, its treatment or its prevention, can be undertaken by neurological surgeons.

Rapid and accurate diagnosis of the kind of stroke and the exact location of its damage is critical to successful treatment. Such technical advances as the use of the operating microscope (microsurgery) and the surgical laser have made it possible to treat stroke problems that were thought to be inoperable a few years ago.

When there is a warning, or when the stroke is identified early, there may be several options for surgical treatment. A neurological surgeon may be able to:

bullet

repair a bleeding aneurysm inside the head

bullet

remove blood clots within the skull or brain

bullet

remove plaques that may break loose from the carotid artery in the neck

 

 

Copyright© 1998-2003

American Association of Neurological Surgeons / Congress of Neurological Surgeons

 
Design by Vicky Woodard
Copyright © 2005 PNNI
All Rights Reserved
 
4310 Londonderry Road Harrisburg, PA 17109
(717) 920-PNNI  •  Fax: (717) 920-4361
Toll Free 1 (888) 920-4360