STROKE
OVERVIEW
A Stroke is a medical emergency that occurs when brain tissues get deprived of oxygen and nutrients.
Symptoms
Some of the common signs and symptoms include:
- Trouble with speaking and understanding
- Trouble with seeing in one or both eyes
- Trouble with walking
- Paralysis or numbness of the face, arm or leg
- Headache
Causes
A Stroke occurs when the blood supply to the brain is interrupted or reduced, which deprives brain of oxygen and nutrients, thereby causing brain cells to die. Further, it may be caused by a blocked artery (ischemic stroke) or the leaking or bursting of a blood vessel (hemorrhagic stroke). In some cases, people may experience only a temporary disruption of blood flow to their brain (transient ischemic attack, or TIA).
Treatments
Depending upon the type of stroke, doctors adopt the treatment strategy. Emergency treatment with medications like Aspirin and intravenous injection of tissue plasminogen activator, must be administered within three hours of the stroke. Doctors sometimes recommend carotid endarterectomy and angioplasty. Further, emergency treatment of hemorrhagic stroke calls for surgical blood vessel repair, including clipping, coiling, AVM removal and intracranial bypass.
