Stroke: definition, causes, symptoms and treatment

This serious neurovascular problem can have different causes and warning symptoms.

Stroke is known by many other names: cerebral accident, apoplexy, cerebral attack or cerebral infarction.and is feared by everyone, regardless of how it is labeled.

The cause of this fear is that the effects of a stroke can be fatal to the person, ranging from the onset of any type of disability to death. To give you an idea, stroke is the third leading cause of death in the western part of the world.

That is why it is so important to know what they consist of and what their first symptoms are, in order to avoid any greater harm to the person.

• Recommended article: "The 15 main neurological disorders".

What is a stroke? Definition

A stroke consists of interruption of Blood flow to the brain due to a blocked or ruptured blood vessel.. This suspension of blood supply to the brain means that neurons do not receive enough oxygen and begin to die.

If we take into account that the brain is responsible for the functioning of everything a person does: walking, thinking, speaking, moving, and even breathing, it can end up with some kind of disability; causing permanent damage to the brain or even death if the stroke is not detected in time.

Two types of stroke can be differentiated:

1. ischemic stroke

Due to the formation of atherosclerotic plaques in the arterial vessels that inject blood into the brain, impeding the passage of blood. Other times, this pause in blood flow is produced by a blood clot with a larger than usual size..

2. Hemorrhagic stroke

In this type of stroke the rupture of a blood vessel in the brain, and the consequent leakage of blood through it, causes intracranial hemorrhage, which can also affect the membranes that surround the brain and the meninges. which may also affect the membranes surrounding the brain and the meninges.

Causes and risk factors

There are three main reasons for stroke:

1. Blockage of the arteries by a clot or hardening.Arterial blockage: prone to occur in people with arteriosclerosis, diabetes, high cholesterol levels or hypertension.

2. Obstruction due to cerebral embolism: in this type of accident, a blood clot, belonging to any area of the body, can cause a stroke.belonging to any area of the body, travels through the body until it encounters a narrow artery where it becomes stuck.

3. Intracranial hemorrhage caused by ruptureIntracranial hemorrhage, rupture due to hardening or congestion of the blood vessels, also called aneurysm, or due to hypertension.

Although many of these causes are associated with various stroke risk diseases, there are risk factors, some of them avoidable, so that an apparently healthy person can suffer any of the types of stroke.

Unchangeable risk factors

These risk factors are impossible for the individual to control or modify. These are:

• GeneticsIf there is a family history of stroke, this person may be more prone to suffer one.
• AgeOlder people are more likely to have a stroke.
• SexMen are generally more likely than women to have a stroke.
• Being born with a more fragile heart than usual or having an altered heart rate.
• First months after pregnancyRisk factors: Women who have just given birth may be more likely to have a stroke after the first few months.

Controllable risk factors

However, there are other elements that also influence the risk of suffering a cardiovascular incident but that can be modified or controlled:

• Physical inactivity: regular physical exercise decreases the likelihood of stroke.
• High cholesterol levels: the possibility of suffering a stroke increases when blood cholesterol levels exceed 240 mg/dL.
• Obesity
• Anxiety or stress
• Tobacco

Symptoms

The bad reputation and fear of strokes comes, in addition to the consequences that this can have, because in many cases the symptoms appear suddenly, reaching the person to not perceive any of them and therefore not realize that you are suffering a stroke.

Symptoms that usually warn of an effusion include are:

• Severe headache with no apparent cause.
• Confusion and slurred speech
• Loss of vision in one or both eyes
• Numbness or weakness in the face, arms and legs (especially on one side of the body).
• Dizziness, lightheadedness, dizziness, and loss of balance or coordination

FAST stroke test

However, there is a protocol for rapid detection of stroke. This protocol called FAST (Face, Arms, Speech, Time) is vital to the possibility of detecting a stroke and saving life, with only the appearance of one of them being cause for alarm.

The test consists of observing a series of milestones:

1. CaraIf the person can only move one side of the face is a sign of stroke. For this, the person is asked to smile and it is observed if both sides are equal or not.

2. ArmsIf the person is only able to lift one arm, or feels difficulty in the other, this is another sign.

3. SpeakAsk the person to say his name and surname, his address or simply to repeat a phrase, if he does not coordinate the words or does it very slowly, it is considered a sign of stroke.

4. TimeWhether it meets the three signs or only one, it is vital to contact the emergency services to intervene as soon as possible, since after the first hour from the onset of symptoms the damage may be irreversible.

Diagnosis

For a correct diagnosis of stroke it is necessary both to identify what type of stroke it is and to determine the location and cause of the stroke..

As a first step in identifying the type of effusion, clinicians may use a computed tomography (CT) scan of the head or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Next, there are various tests and techniques to get the rest of the information about the effusion. Such as:

• Blood tests
• Electrocardiograms (ECG)
• Cerebral angiography
• Carotid ultrasound or Doppler ultrasound.

Treatment

As mentioned above, a stroke requires emergency treatment, which can reduce the likelihood of disability and even save the patient's life.

The choice of treatment will depend on the type of stroke, but in either case the priority is to restore blood flow when it is an ischemic stroke, and reduce brain pressure in case it is hemorrhagic.

In the event that the cause of the effusion is a blood clot, and this is detected during the first few hours after the onset of the effusion, the patient is given a clot-reducing drug, which will dilute the clot and boost blood flow to the affected area.

In addition to this emergency treatment, two other types of treatment are available to contain the effects of strokes:

Intracranial vascular systems

Endovascular interventions are used to increase blood flow in veins and arteries of the brain. This treatment involves the introduction of a catheter along the blood vessels until it reaches the brain. Once there, the catheter can leave different elements:

• Drugs to dissolve the blood mass.
• Aspiration systems or mechanized removers
• Balloons and stents, used to keep the vessels open.
• Aneurysm repairing metal coils

2. Surgery

Through the use of surgery, the medical professional can remove the blood that has spilled around the brain, as well as mend those broken blood vessels.

After a stroke, most people need to attend rehabilitation in order to regain the functions that may have been affected by the stroke. As well as re-education of the patient to eliminate risk factors that could facilitate the occurrence of a second stroke.