Stroke: Difference between revisions
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==Summary== | |||
A '''stroke''' is a sudden, focal loss of brain function due to an interruption in the [[blood]] supply to all or part of the [[brain]] <ref name="hatano1976">{{cite journal | last=Hatano | first=S | journal=Bull World Health Organ | year=1976 | volume=54 | issue=5 | pages=541-53 title=Experience from a multicentre stroke register: a preliminary report}}</ref>. Loss of brain function occurs when neurons loose their oxygen supply. This is often due to a disturbance in cerebral [[perfusion]]. There are many different causes for the interruption of blood supply, and different parts of the brain can be affected. Because of this, strokes can have many different clinical presentations. | A '''stroke''' is a sudden, focal loss of brain function due to an interruption in the [[blood]] supply to all or part of the [[brain]] <ref name="hatano1976">{{cite journal | last=Hatano | first=S | journal=Bull World Health Organ | year=1976 | volume=54 | issue=5 | pages=541-53 title=Experience from a multicentre stroke register: a preliminary report}}</ref>. Loss of brain function occurs when neurons loose their oxygen supply. This is often due to a disturbance in cerebral [[perfusion]]. There are many different causes for the interruption of blood supply, and different parts of the brain can be affected. Because of this, strokes can have many different clinical presentations. | ||
Stroke is a [[medical emergency]] and can cause permanent neurologic damage or even death if not promptly diagnosed and treated. It is the third leading cause of [[death]] and the leading cause of '''adult''' disability in the [[United States]] and industrialized [[European]] nations. On average, a stroke occurs every 45 seconds and someone dies from a stroke every 3 minutes.{{fact}} | |||
Risk factors include [[Old age|advanced age]],[[hypertension]] (high blood pressure), [[diabetes mellitus]], [[hypercholesterolemia|high cholesterol]], [[cigarette smoking]], [[atrial fibrillation]], [[migraine]] with aura, and [[thrombophilia]]. Cigarette smoking is the most important modifiable [[risk factor]] of stroke. | |||
The term "'''brain attack'''" is starting to come into use in the United States for stroke, just as the term "heart attack" is used for [[myocardial infarction]], where a cutoff of blood causes [[necrosis]] to the tissue of the [[heart]]. Many hospitals have "brain attack" teams within their [[neurology]] departments specifically for swift treatment of stroke.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} | |||
[[Category:Health Sciences Workgroup]] | [[Category:Health Sciences Workgroup]] | ||
Revision as of 22:05, 27 April 2007
Summary
A stroke is a sudden, focal loss of brain function due to an interruption in the blood supply to all or part of the brain [1]. Loss of brain function occurs when neurons loose their oxygen supply. This is often due to a disturbance in cerebral perfusion. There are many different causes for the interruption of blood supply, and different parts of the brain can be affected. Because of this, strokes can have many different clinical presentations. Stroke is a medical emergency and can cause permanent neurologic damage or even death if not promptly diagnosed and treated. It is the third leading cause of death and the leading cause of adult disability in the United States and industrialized European nations. On average, a stroke occurs every 45 seconds and someone dies from a stroke every 3 minutes.Template:Fact
Risk factors include advanced age,hypertension (high blood pressure), diabetes mellitus, high cholesterol, cigarette smoking, atrial fibrillation, migraine with aura, and thrombophilia. Cigarette smoking is the most important modifiable risk factor of stroke.
The term "brain attack" is starting to come into use in the United States for stroke, just as the term "heart attack" is used for myocardial infarction, where a cutoff of blood causes necrosis to the tissue of the heart. Many hospitals have "brain attack" teams within their neurology departments specifically for swift treatment of stroke.Template:Fact
- ↑ Hatano, S (1976). "{{{title}}}". Bull World Health Organ 54 (5): 541-53 title=Experience from a multicentre stroke register: a preliminary report.