HEALTH

WHEN STROKE STRIKES
By Henrylito D. Tacio
Stroke is the third-leading cause of death in Asia – after cancer and heart disease, according to the regional office of World Health Organization based in Manila. Unfortunately, most people who experience an impending stroke don’t recognize the symptoms of in denial that he has a “brain attack.”
“A stroke event must be dealt with just like a heart attack,” declares Dr. Alejandro F. Diaz, an associate professor of neurology at the University of Santo Tomas. “The phrase ‘brain attack’ was coined to mean that stroke is always an emergency. A ‘wait and see’ attitude has no room in the management of this serious disease. Even when stroke symptoms are perceived as mild, the condition should still get immediate medical attention.”
There are two main types of stroke: ischemic and hemorrhagic. In ischemic, about 80 percent of strokes are caused by atherosclerosis (buildup of cholesterol-containing fatty deposits called plaque). Growth of plaque roughens the inside of the artery. The irregular surface can cause turbulent blood flow around the buildup — like a boulder in a rushing stream – and trigger development of a clot.
More than half of ischemic strokes are caused by stationary (thrombotic) blood clots that develop in the arteries leading from the heart to the brain – typically the carotid arteries in the neck.
A less frequent form of ischemic stroke occurs when a tiny piece of clotted blood breaks loose from the artery wall and is swept through larger arteries into smaller vessels of the brain. A clot that may have developed in a chamber in the heart can also break loose. If the moving (embolic) clot lodges in a small artery and blocks blood flow to a portion of the brain, a stroke occurs. ”An ischemic stroke usually affects the cerebrum, the portion of your brain that controls your movement, language and senses,” says the Mayo Foundation.
The hemorrhagic type of stroke occurs when a blood vessel in the brain leaks or ruptures. Blood from the hemorrhage spills into the surrounding brain tissue causing damage. Brain cells beyond the leak or rupture are deprived of blood and are also damaged.
One cause of hemorrhagic stroke is an aneurysm. This “ballooning” from a weak spot in a blood vessel wall develops with age. Some aneurysms may also form as a result of a genetic predisposition. As an aneurysm forms, the vessel wall becomes thin and stretched. An aneurysm that grows to at least three-eighths of an inch in diameter (about the size of the head of a thumbtack) is most likely to rupture.
The most common cause of hemorrhagic stroke is high blood pressure (hypertension). The constant force exerted by uncontrolled high blood pressure can weaken blood vessel walls. Eventually, the small blood vessels in the brain can hemorrhage. Hypertension increases the risk of a hemorrhagic stroke whether or not a person has an aneurysm.
“Hemorrhagic strokes are less common than ischemic strokes — but more often deadly,” warns the Mayo Foundation. “About 50 percent of people who have hemorrhagic strokes die compared to about 20 percent for ischemic strokes. Strokes that occur in young adults are typically hemorrhagic.”