Stroke

When blood flow to a region of the brain is cut off or a blood vessel ruptures and spills blood into the crevices between brain cells, a stroke has occurred. Once the oxygen supply and nutrients carried in the bloodstream has been depleted or blood seeps into the brain, brain cells die.

Signs of a stroke include:

Unexpected numbness or loss of strength, specifically on one side of the body.
Sudden incoherency or difficulty speaking or comprehending speech.
Abrupt deterioration of eyesight in one or both eyes.
Problems walking, vertigo, or loss of balance or motor skills.
Inexplicable excruciating headache.

There are two types of strokes:

Ischemic stroke -- clogged blood vessel supplying the brain.
Hemorrhagic stroke -- bleeding into or around the brain.

Treatment

There are three stages to stroke treatment:

Prevention -- plan developed to minimize the risk factors leading to a stroke. Examples include hypertension, atrial fibrillation, and diabetes.
Therapy immediately following stroke -- attempts to stop a stroke in its tracks by ridding the clogged artery of any blockage that may have caused an ischemic stroke or by halting the bleeding related to a hemorrhagic stroke.
Post-stroke rehabilitation -- assists individuals in conquering or dealing with disabilities caused by a stroke. Prescription drugs, particularly antithrombotics and thrombolytics, are the most common form of stroke treatment.

Outlook

Even though a stroke is a brain disorder, it can have an impact on the entire body; oftentimes, stroke victims end up paralyzed on one whole side of the body with a condition called hemiplegia. Hemiparesis is a similar impairment which causes weakness on an entire side of the body, as opposed to paralysis. Stroke victims may not be as witty as they once were, having difficulty with information processing, alertness, attention span, comprehension, decision-making, and recall. They also may have trouble formulating and understanding sentences. Strokes can also contribute to psychological problems where patients may have sudden inappropriate outbursts. Stroke victims typically suffer from depression as well. Another stroke-related side effect that occurs frequently involves numbness or strange feelings. Sometimes painful, these sensations are intensified in the hands and feet and are heightened by motion and changes in temperature, especially cold weather. About a quarter of the population who recuperates after their first stroke will have another in the next five years.

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