Dorothy FarrarStroke
A stroke or stroke is a circulatory disorder of individual vascular areas in the brain, which leads to an undersupply or lack of blood or oxygen supply in the brain.
What is a stroke?
In medicine, experts summarize the processes involved in stroke as an apoplectic or cerebral insult, an apoplexy or simply an insult.
A stroke leads to an undersupply of oxygen-rich blood to the brain. As a result, functional disorders and functional failures occur predominantly in the central nervous system, which are manifested by the appearance of various disease-specific symptoms.
The stroke belongs to a group of diseases or acute disorders, which are listed under the collective name stroke and cerebrovascular accident and are superficially characterized by deficits in the brain.
Causes
Basically, different parameters come into question as triggering factors and causal relationships for the stroke. In most cases, several causes of stroke are linked.
In this context, the focus is particularly on circulatory disorders. In addition, anatomical impairments of the vascular systems in the brain also play an important role.
A sudden stroke can be the result of both physical and mental exertion or overuse. It has been proven that there are stroke-triggering stressors that lead to this clinical picture in the context of mental overload.
Arteriosclerotic changes in the blood vessels, which lead to reduced blood flow to the cerebral vessels, favor a stroke. These processes can last for a long time until a stroke occurs.
In addition, all phenomena that lead to narrowing or occlusion of blood vessels in the brain are also cited as causes of stroke.
Stroke often involves thrombi, so-called clumps of blood cells, which arise in any other region of the body and are transported through the bloodstream to the fine brain vessels. There, the blood clots can settle and partially or completely clog a vessel.
Symptoms and course
A stroke is an emergency in which the ambulance must be called immediately after the first symptoms. In addition to memory loss, the first symptoms or warning signs can also be short-term speech disorders, or short paralysis and visual disturbances. However, these regress within a few minutes to 24 hours.A stroke causes persistent damage to the brain. Depending on the affected areas in the brain, there are different sequelae. Often it comes to hemiplegia. The limbs of the affected side sag and the corner of the mouth hangs down.
Often these symptoms are accompanied by emotional and speech disorders. In addition to headaches, vomiting and nausea, a stroke can lead to loss of consciousness.
Some affected women also complain of body aches, chest pain and shortness of breath, while in contrast, speech disorders and hemiplegia are the most common symptoms in men.
Diagnosis
If a stroke is suspected, some functional tests are first carried out. It is checked whether the patient is able to smile and extend both arms forward – the palms must point upwards. He is also asked to repeat a simple sentence.
The doctor usually also examines the person concerned for severe headaches, dizziness, blurred vision and numbness in the arms and legs. If the suspicion is confirmed, a neurological examination is carried out, for example a Computer Tomography . Cerebral hemorrhages, among other things, can be detected with the CT.
Alternatively, magnetic resonance imaging ( MRI ) can also be used. Both methods are used to localize the stroke and to assess the extent. A so-called Doppler ultrasound can also be used to determine whether the blood vessels responsible for supplying the brain are narrowed or blocked.
Regardless of whether the suspicion is confirmed, a blood test can be carried out. It provides information about whether the blood sugar or cholesterol levels are elevated or whether there is a blood clotting disorder. These factors increase the risk of having a stroke.
Complications
A stroke is a serious disease. This requires immediate delivery to a “stroke unit”. It comes to unilateral paralysis and impairment of motor skills. As a result, a lifelong bedridden can occur. Long periods of stay increase the risk of further complications such as thrombosis or embolism. Pneumonia or colonization with multi-resistant germs can further damage the weakened patients.
In addition, operations to remove the clot may be necessary. There are increased surgical risks here. These can lead to bleeding or another stroke. Due to the stroke, internal organs or sensory organs can be impaired in their function. Depending on which organ has been damaged, the resulting complications can take many forms. Intellectual performance is significantly reduced in severe strokes. It can lead to dementia.
Some sequelae occur preferentially in the early phase of the stroke. Not infrequently, there are immediate complications such as cerebral edema. Others suffer from epileptic seizures as a result of the stroke. Later, some sufferers become malignant. They suffer from personality changes. Many complications are the result of longer periods of stay or typical symptoms of failure after a stroke.
Further complications can be caused by pre-existing conditions such as high blood pressure, hyperthyroidism, diabetes or heart disease. Since these have already existed, they have favored the stroke and complicate its treatment.
The complication rate increases with the duration and severity of the psoriatic disease. Young patients in particular often develop comorbidities in the course of the disease, which can promote early death if left untreated.
Treatment and therapy
The stroke is a life-threatening, acute disorder that must be treated immediately by an emergency doctor in order to reduce the long-term consequences and often save the lives of those affected.
Immediate follow-up treatment in the inpatient area is also relevant in the event of a stroke. In addition to drug therapy, the focus is on other procedures. Both antihypertensive and anticoagulant drugs, which often have to be taken for life, are suitable. It is often effective to initiate a dissolution of the detected blood clot in the affected vessels. This procedure is called lysis therapy.
Another ongoing treatment for stroke is to reverse any paralysis that may have occurred, which is classic for a stroke. This justifies a follow-up or combination treatment resulting from a system Another, ongoing treatment for stroke is , speech therapy and physiotherapeutic methodologies.
The aim of all these procedures is to regain the skills and abilities lost as a result of the stroke through education and training or to transfer them to other brain regions.
Prevention
Stroke is an event that can be avoided if appropriate preventive measures are implemented that can be directly integrated into everyday life and habits.This is aimed in particular at reducing special risk factors that can promote stroke. In addition to a reduction in , a low-fat diet and a healthy diet, sufficient physical exercise and the restriction or complete cessation of nicotine and alcohol consumption, a reduction in obesity and regular check-ups at the doctor can prevent a stroke.
The technically correct treatment of pre-existing conditions also prevents a stroke.
Hello and welcome to my Health Guide & Encyclopedia! My name is Dorothy Farrar, and I'm the founder and main author of this platform.
My passion for health and wellness started at a young age when I became interested in the connection between the food we eat and the way we feel. This fascination led me to study nutrition and dietetics in college, where I learned about the importance of a balanced diet and the impact of various nutrients on the body.