Strokes
There are several terms to describe strokes including brain attack and cerebrovascular accident. The cause of a stroke is not enough blood getting to part of you brain just the same as in a heart attack.
Your brain needs a constant flow of blood to function properly and when this is interrupted permanent damage can occur quite quickly unless the flow is restarted. You can have either an ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke.
Like the heart your brain cannot repair dead areas so the immediate aim of stroke treatment is to reduce the damage. After a stroke your brain needs to make new pathways round the dead area and stroke rehabilitation is the best method.
Types of Stroke
Ischemic is medical speak for not enough blood. In an ischaemic stroke a clot blocks either the brains’ blood vessel or it is too narrow and not enough blood can flow. Blood cannot reach parts of the brain and the cells soon start to die.
Most strokes are ischemic in nature and the risk factors include blood vessel disease, smoking, hypertension and heart arrhythmias particularly atrial fibrillation.
Hemorrhagic is medical jargon for, if you like too much blood. Usually, hemorrhagic strokes are caused by a burst blood vessel leaking blood and damaging the immediate area. Roughly 25% of strokes are hemorrhagic and affect all ages from baby to pensioner.
Once again high blood pressure is a risk factor, along with aneurysms that burst and blood clotting disorders.
Treatment of stroke
The initial treatment of stroke aims to minmise brain damage and if possible restore blood flow. That’s why it’s essential to get to hospital quickly so diagnosis and treatment can start as soon as possible.
In the early stages after a stroke, which means the first few weeks, your initial problems may start to improve quite quickly. This is down to malfunctioning brain cells at the edge of the dead area recovering. This is great but can be a false dawn as for most people several months of rehab are looming.
For better recovery you need months of rehabilitation involving physiotherapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy and writing and reading practice if necessary.
In the past it was considered impossible for the brain to bypass damaged areas. This is incorrect and it is now recognised that with the correct stimulation the brain can bypass damaged areas and make new pathways for information to flow.
A steady flow of information to your brain and you responding to it is the way to get the best possible results for stroke rehabilitation. The whole thrust of rehabilitation is to boost your recovery and help the brain make new pathways. Much work is necessary but the results are usually worth it.
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