STROKE

10 Pages 2568 Words

Table of Contents

Definition 2
General Information 3
Types
Ischemic Stroke 4
Hemorrhagic Stroke 5
Stroke Warning Signs .6
Risk Factors
Treatable Risk Factors 7
How a CVA is Diagnosed 8
Medical Treatment
Emergency and Rehabilitation .9
Prevention and Prognosis 10
Effects of Stroke 11
Common Problems and Complications 12
Statistics 13
Cost Of Stroke to the United States 14
Final Data for 2000 14
Key Terms 15









Definition

A cerebrovascular accident more commonly known as a stroke or brain attack is the term used to describe the sudden death of brain cells in a localized area due to inadequate blood flow. In order to woke the brain needs a constant supply of oxygen and nutrients. This supply is carried to the brain by blood through the arteries. If part of the brain is deprived of blood for longer than a few seconds brain cells can die. A stroke causes loss of function, sometimes permanently, in the part of the body that is controlled by the damaged part of the brain.

General Information

A stroke occurs when blood vessels in the brain burst spilling blood into the space surrounding brain cells, or when the blood supply to part of the brain is blocked thus a stroke is known as a cerebrovascular accident (¡§cerebro¡¨ refers to a part of the brain ¡§vascular¡¨ refers to the blood vessels and arteries.) In the same way that a person suffering a loss of blood flow to the heart is said to be having a heart attack, a person with a loss of blood flow to the brain or sudden bleeding in the brain can be said to be having a ¡§brain attack.¡¨

Blood flow to the brain tissue can be hampered in two ways, one the vessel ruptures, causing blood to leak into the brain. Hemorrhagic is the term used to describe bleeding into the brain or the spaces surrounding the brain. In the second the vessel clogs within Ischemic is the term used to describe the blockage of blood flow and loss of oxygen and nu...