Last updated on March 5, 2021
Yesterday, I found out that my childhood best friend is in the hospital with a stroke. Today, I went to see her. It was a heartbreaking sight. At this time, she cannot use the right side of her body because it is numb. She feels nothing.
No one ever knows the impact of a disease until it hits home. I dedicate the post to my dear friend. To raise awareness, we will dive into understanding a stroke.
Definition
A stroke is also known as a ‘brain attack’ or ‘Cerebrovascular Accident’ (CVA). It is a brain disease. But, it can affect the whole body. It is a medical emergency. Unfortunately, as a result of COVID-19, there has been a decline in the number of reported strokes, likely because patients have not requested medical attention. Please, never disregard the signs.
Causes
A stroke can occur when there is an obstruction of blood supply to a part of the brain. It also occurs when a brain blood vessel (arteries, veins, or capillaries) ruptures. That causes the blood to pour into nearby cells in the brain. As a result, brain cells die when they do not receive oxygen and nourishment from blood. Or every time there is unexpected blood in or around the brain.
Types
Ischemic form: This happens when the blood flow to the brain is blocked, typically by a blood clot. It could be thrombotic or embolic in nature.
Hemorrhagic form: This happens when blood bleeds into or around the brain. It could be an intracerebral or subarachnoid hemorrhage.
Most cases are caused by a clot (ischemic form) vs. bleeding in the brain (hemorrhagic form).
Risk factors
Risk Factors Within Your Power
- High blood pressure
- High blood cholesterol
- Atrial fibrillation
- Diabetes
- Smoking
- Diet
- Obesity
- Physical inactivity
- Carotid Artery Disease
- Peripheral Artery Disease
- Other Heart Disease
- Sickle Cell Disease (Sickle Cell Anemia)
Failure to properly control the above risk factor increases the risk that an event will occur.
Risk Factors Not Within Your Power
- Age
- Family History
- Race
- Gender
- A history of previous stroke or heart conditions
The risk of stroke is higher among older black adults compared to whites. Persons with family history and survivors remain at greater risk. According to Harvard Health, “Women are at higher risk than men.” but it occurs more in men than women.
Symptoms
- Unexpected numb or weak feeling, especially on one side of the body
- Unexpected trouble talking or understanding language
- Suddenly having trouble seeing
- Sudden onset of walking problems, light-headedness, or imbalance
- A sudden severe headache without any known cause
- Sudden pain in an arm, a leg, a side of your face or chest
- Sudden drooping or sagging of the face
- Fatigue or mental changes
- Sudden onset of a protracted case of hiccups
- A feeling of the heart beating fast or palpitations
“Stroke is preventable. Up to 80% of strokes could be prevented through healthy lifestyle changes and working with your health care team to control health conditions that raise your risk for stroke.”
CDC, 2021
Treatments
- Prevention – Best of all. This involves treating the underlying risk factors for stroke, such as high blood pressure, atrial fibrillation, and diabetes.
- Use of drugs immediately following an incident or at the time it occurs. Usually within the first 3-4 hours. The medications dissolve or quickly remove the blood clot causing ischemic form or by stopping bleeding from a hemorrhagic form. The medications used to prevent or treat this brain disease are antithrombotic (antiplatelet and anticoagulant agents). Drugs that break up or dissolve blood clots, called thrombolytics.
- Rehabilitation – helps to address disabilities caused by stroke.
Research Scientists are working to develop new and better ways to help the brain repair itself to restore important functions. New advances in imaging and rehabilitation have shown that the brain can compensate for functional loss.
Possible Outcomes
- Hemiplegia, a complete paralysis on one side of the body
- Hemiparesis, a one-sided weakness of the body
- Problems with reasoning, consciousness, attention, learning, and memory
- Impaired speech
- Emotional instability
- Post-stroke depression
- Numbness or weird feelings
- The pain in the hands and feet worsened with extreme movements and temperature changes.
- There could be a reoccurrence. About 19.4 percent of people who recover from their first incident have another one within 5 years
In the case of an event, the sooner we get treatment, the less likely it is that our brain tissue will be permanently damaged.
A very insightful reminder as to why we need to prioritize mental and/or physical health above all else. Thank you.
Thank you!
Thank you for this insightful article. Also wishing your friend a quick recovery.
Thank you! Her kidney is now failing though. We are hoping for the best.
Thank you very much for this. It will be interesting to see how stroke occurrences play out across different demographics, and possibly, geography. I’m watching this space.
This would be an excellent subject on which we could carry out a comparative study. Thank you, Ekene