Overview of stroke

[Little_Girl]

A stroke occurs when an artery to the brain becomes blocked or ruptures, resulting in death of an area of brain tissue due to loss of its blood supply (cerebral infarction) and symptoms that occur suddenly.

Most strokes are ischemic (usually due to blockage of an artery), but some are hemorrhagic (due to rupture of an artery).
Transient ischemic attacks resemble ischemic strokes except that no permanent brain damage occurs and the symptoms typically resolve within 1 hour.
Symptoms occur suddenly and can include muscle weakness, paralysis, abnormal or lost sensation on one side of the body, difficulty speaking, confusion, problems with vision, dizziness, loss of balance and coordination, and, in some hemorrhagic strokes, a sudden, severe headache.
Diagnosis is based mainly on symptoms, but imaging and blood tests are also done.
Recovery after a stroke depends on many factors, such as the location and amount of brain damage, the person’s age, and the presence of other disorders.
Controlling high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, and high blood sugar levels and not smoking help prevent strokes.
Treatment may include drugs to make blood less likely to clot or to break up clots and sometimes various procedures to treat blocked or narrowed arteries or surgery to remove a clot (such as angioplasty).

A stroke is called a cerebrovascular disorder because it affects the brain (cerebro-) and the blood vessels (vascular) that supply blood to the brain.
Worldwide, stroke is the second most common cause of death. In the United States, strokes are the fifth most common cause of death and the most common cause of disabling nervous system damage in adults. In the United States, about 795,000 people have a stroke, and about 130,000 die of stroke each year.
Strokes are much more common among older people than among younger adults, usually because the disorders that lead to strokes progress over time. Over two thirds of all strokes occur in people older than 65. Stroke is more common among women than among men, and nearly 60% of deaths due to stroke occur in women, possibly because women are on average older when the stroke occurs.
Blacks, Hispanics, American Indians, and Alaska Natives are more likely than non-Hispanic whites or Asians to have a stroke. The risk of having a first stroke is nearly twice as high for blacks as for whites. Blacks are also more likely to die of a stroke than whites.