The Warning Signs of Stroke

The Warning Signs of Stroke
IN THIS ARTICLE
Warning Signs
Be Prepared
When you have a stroke, your brain isn't getting the blood it needs. You need treatment right away to lower your chances of brain damage, disability, or even death.

Use the FAST test to check for the most common symptoms of a stroke in yourself or someone else.

Face: Smile and see if one side of the face droops.

Arms: Raise both arms. Does one arm drop down?

Speech: Say a short phrase and check for slurred or strange speech.

Time: If the answer to any of these is yes, call 911 right away and write down the time when symptoms started.

Minutes matter in treating stroke. Calling a doctor or driving to the hospital yourself wastes time. Ambulance workers can judge your situation sooner, and that boosts your chance of getting the treatment you need as soon as possible.




Alternative Treatments for AFib
Medication and surgery aren't the only things that can improve or prevent your AFib symptoms. Talk to your doctor about these ideas from WebMD to help treat your condition.

Depending on the type of stroke, doctors may give you aspirin or powerful clot-busting drugs. The treatment works best when you get this medication within 3 hours of when your symptoms started. If your stroke was caused by a burst blood vessel, doctors will try to stop the bleeding as soon as possible.

Warning Signs
Sometimes a stroke happens gradually, but you're likely to have one or more sudden symptoms like these:

Numbness or weakness in your face, arm, or leg, especially on one side
Confusion or trouble understanding other people
Difficulty speaking
Trouble seeing with one or both eyes
Problems walking or staying balanced or coordinated
Dizziness
Severe headache that comes on for no reason
If you have these symptoms, call 911 even if you're not sure you're having a stroke.


Be Prepared
Each year, some 800,000 people in the U.S. have a stroke. They can happen to anyone at any time. Planning for an emergency can make a big difference.

Learn the warning signs of a stroke and let your family and friends know, too.
If you have any medical conditions, wear a medical bracelet or other identification that lists them, your allergies, and any medication you take.
Teach your children the FAST test, plus how to call 911, give your address, and describe what's happening.


Understanding Stroke -- Symptoms

What Are the Symptoms of a Stroke?
You should consider these symptoms warning signs and consult your health care provider:

Sudden weakness or numbness in the face, arm, or leg on one side of the body.
Abrupt loss of vision, strength, coordination, sensation, speech, or the ability to understand speech. These symptoms may become worse over time.
Sudden dimness of vision, especially in one eye.
Sudden loss of balance, possibly accompanied by vomiting, nausea, fever, hiccups, or trouble with swallowing.
Sudden and severe headache with no other cause followed rapidly by loss of consciousness -- indications of a stroke due to bleeding.
Brief loss of consciousness.
Unexplained dizziness or sudden falls.





Call 911 If:
If you or someone with you exhibits any of the signs of stroke, do not delay because timely treatment is critical to survival and recovery.

Call for emergency services.

If the symptoms pass quickly, this may indicate a transient ischemic attack (TIA), a brief blockage of blood flow to the brain that is often a forerunner of stroke. Do not ignore this warning sign.


You must get to the hospital immediately. Some treatments must begin within the first few hours of symptoms; early treatment can often help prevent a fatal or disabling stroke from occurring


Types of Stroke

Ischemic Stroke
Hemorrhagic Stroke
Have you learned that someone you care about had a stroke? Don't jump to conclusions about how it will affect him. Not all strokes are created equal. There are three major kinds, with different warning signs and symptoms.

All types have one thing in common: a loss of blood to part of your brain. That causes big problems.

Your brain cells need the oxygen that's carried by your blood. So when a stroke cuts the supply, some of the cells start to die. And that sets off trouble like memory loss, confusion, and numbness on one side your body.

There are two main types of stroke:

Ischemic
Hemorrhagic
If you have signs of any of them, call 911 right away. The sooner you get treated, the less likely you are to have long-term effects.

Ischemic Stroke
Most strokes are this type. You get them when a fatty substance called plaque collects in your arteries and narrows them. This is called atherosclerosis, and it slows the flow of blood. As it pools, blood can clump and form clots -- and your artery gets blocked.

Besides atherosclerosis, some other things that can raise your chances of getting an ischemic stroke are:




Irregular heartbeat
Heart attack
Problem with your heart's valves
Injury to blood vessels in your neck
Blood clotting problem
There are two main types of ischemic stroke:

Thrombotic strokes. They're caused by a blood clot that forms in an artery that supplies blood to your brain.

Embolic strokes. They happen when a clot forms somewhere else in your body and travels through the blood vessels to your brain. It gets stuck there and stops the flow of your blood.


The symptoms of an ischemic stroke depend on which parts of your brain are affected. They can include things like:

Sudden numbness or weakness of your face, arm, or leg, often on one side of the body
Confusion
Problems speaking or understanding others
Dizziness, loss of balance or coordination, or trouble walking
Vision loss or double vision
You're more likely to have an ischemic stroke if you:

Are over age 60
Have high blood pressure, heart disease, high cholesterol, or diabetes
Have an irregular heartbeat
Smoke
Have a family history of strokes

You're more likely to have this type of stroke if you:

Are over age 65
Have high cholesterol, high blood pressure, or diabetes that's not under control
Are obese
Had a stroke in the past
Have a family history of strokes
Smoke
Eat unhealthy foods
Don't exercise

A hemorrhagic stroke can cause complications like:

Seizures
Memory and thinking problems
Heart problems
Swallowing problems and trouble eating and drinking