Know About Stroke | Symptoms, Causes, And Treatment

Some medical conditions are extremely serious in such a way that they become the cause of death for someone. Like, talking about stroke, it proves to be one of the known life-threatening conditions. Stroke is experienced when there is a decline or obstruction in the blood supply of the brain. If it happens, a person requires urgent medical help. Otherwise, it may become the cause of disability or may lead to death.

More About Stroke

Our brain is supposed to be an exceptionally complex part of the body that takes charge of controlling various activities. When there is a presence of lesser blood flow in the part of the brain, our brain cells find problems in getting the nutrients and oxygen they require from blood. Due to this activity, the tissues, as well as the brain cells, are damaged and they begin to die within some time. You can recognize stroke with some other names like a cerebrovascular accident (CVA), or brain attack.

Causes Of Stroke

There are three major types of stroke. And the cause of a stroke is based on its kind. Let's have a look at those.

1. Ischemic Stroke- This kind of stroke is caused when the blood vessels of the brain are blocked or narrowed. This is the most common kind of stroke. Two main types of ischemic stroke are there to see, namely thrombotic strokes and embolic strokes.

2. Hemorrhagic Stroke

When a blood vessel breaks or bleeds into the brain, there can be a chance of hemorrhagic stroke. Two kinds of hemorrhagic stroke are there to see, an intracerebral hemorrhagic stroke which is the most common one. And a subarachnoid hemorrhage, which proves to be the less common.

3. Transient Ischemic Stroke

This is another kind of stroke that is sometimes said to be a mini-stroke. It occurs when there is a temporary blockage in blood supply to the brain.

Some other risk factors or causes of stroke can be:

* obesity

* high blood pressure

* advanced age (55+)

* personal history of stroke

* diabetes

* high cholesterol

* alcohol usage

* smoking

* usage of illegal drugs

Stroke Symptoms

Various symptoms of stroke are there to observe. Let's have a look at some of them.

1. A sudden or serious headache

2. Problems in walking

3. Vision-related problems in one or both the eyes

4. Paralysis or lack of sensation of the leg, arm, or face

5. Problems to speak or recognize the talk of someone

6. Confusion

7. Vomiting or nausea

8. Seizures

Stroke Treatment

If you think someone is facing such symptoms and may be at risk of stroke, don't wait too much. Try to seek medical attention with a quicker approach. A treatment on time may save the person from damage to the brain or long-term disability. Stroke treatment will be based on its type and the stage of treatment. Like, there are options of acute treatment, post-stroke rehabilitation, and prevention.

To diagnose the condition, the doctor can take help from some tests. This includes a physical examination, blood tests, CT scan, MRI scan, carotid ultrasound, echocardiogram, etc. During an ischemic stroke, the doctor can take help from a thrombolytic therapy with the help of tPA (tissue plasminogen activator). It helps to dissolve the clot by which the artery was suffering from blockage. Else there is an option of endovascular rescue therapy that is mainly done during an acute ischemic stroke. Because of it, the blood supply can be restored.

Regarding hemorrhagic stroke treatment, it is supposed to be tricky. If the area of bleeding is large, there can be a need to implement surgery. Else there are options of surgical clipping, surgical AVM removal, stereotactic radiosurgery, or endovascular embolization. And in the end, talking about transient ischemic stroke, it is not as serious as the other two. It can last for some seconds or fewer than 24 hours. But, to improve the blood flow of the brain, there can be a recommendation to take some medicines. Apart from that, the treatment options include surgical methods and lifestyle modifications.