When stroke occurs every minute counts
Blood must flow, and in all blood vessels, because only then the muscles, organs and the brain can function optimally. However, an obstacle to these vital blood flow is atherosclerosis, also called hardening of the arteries in the vernacular, which greatly increased risk of stroke in conjunction with a high blood pressure.
Thus, the human brain can perform its many tasks such as the control of breathing, thinking, or the storage of memories perfect, but it must be supplied with oxygen and other nutrients. This is spread via the blood to the brain, via the carotid artery and the vertebral arteries. If, in this blood flow disturbances, then threatens a stroke, and its potential impacts – permanent disabilities or may even be death. Here, a stroke can be triggered by blood clot with related vascular occlusion in the brain or cerebral hemorrhage due to a ruptured through a vein. And although stroke to the outside occurs quite suddenly, he announces itself in the vessels usually long before. Being formed, over the course of the years, atherosclerotic deposits in the blood vessels that constrict and stiffen. But not only that age is responsible for this development, but also risk factors such as high blood pressure, high blood lipids, smoking, physical inactivity, obesity and diabetes promote atherosclerosis.
How recognize stroke and what to do then?
The typical symptoms of a stroke include sudden paralysis or numbness in extremities individual or an entire side of the body. However, vision and speech problems, sudden confusion, dizziness, a hanging mouth, loss of consciousness, and severe headaches can be the expression of a stroke, which always constitutes an emergency. The longer part of the brain is not properly taken care of, the more cells can die, which can lead to irreversible damage to the brain. Therefore always an immediate emergency physician should be alert in the case of a suspected stroke, even if symptoms are noticed later. In many US hospitals today there are also special stroke units that specialize in fast and optimal treatment of stroke patients.