Symptoms of a stroke that you should watch out for

We hear a lot recently about people who suddenly had a stroke, and we always expect that they are old people, but what we are surprised about is that these people are still in the youth stage, so what is it? Symptoms of a stroke What should we pay attention to so that we can follow the patient to the nearest hospital to save his life? Is there a treatment for a stroke patient?

What is ischemic stroke?

Stroke is a type of Types of stroke In which there is a shortage of blood carrying oxygen to any part of the brain, as a result of the formation of a blood clot in the blood vessels connecting the brain, which works to prevent blood flow from the heart and lungs to the brain, and it is a serious condition that must be acted quickly to save the patient’s health.

Symptoms of a stroke

Here, you must pay close attention because a stroke in the brain develops rapidly after the initial signs of it appear. If you notice any of these symptoms, you must contact the emergency room immediately:

Primary signs of stroke

  1. Sudden facial muscle weakness and numbness of the face, arm, or foot, especially on one side of the body.
  2. Sudden confusion and disorientation.
  3. Sudden difficulty being able to speak.
  4. Sudden vision problems in one or both eyes.
  5. Sudden difficulty being able to walk.
  6. Sudden dizziness, disturbance of balance and coordination of movement.
  7. Sudden and severe headache for no reason.

Symptoms of acute stroke

There are several other severe symptoms that may appear, especially in women:

  1. Pain in the face, arm or foot.
  2. hiccups
  3. Nausea.
  4. Chest pain and palpitations.
  5. Breathing difficulty.

But we remind you that it is not a requirement that all these symptoms appear together in all patients, only one or two symptoms together is sufficient to go to the emergency.

There are also some people who show them Transient stroke symptoms They are the same symptoms, but disappear within a few minutes, and this condition is called Mild stroke Which is one of the initial signs that must be paid attention to, meaning that even if the symptoms disappear, the patient must go to the doctor or the emergency room for examination and do the necessary.

FAST test for stroke symptoms

If you suspect that a person in front of you has a stroke, you can quickly perform this test to make sure that you need to go to the hospital:

  • FaceIs there a drooping side of the face with the ability to show expressions or move its muscles?
  • ArmIs there difficulty in raising one of the arms, or does the arm droop after raising it and not keeping it raised?
  • Speak. SpeakDoes the patient not understand the words addressed to him or find it difficult to repeat the words or pronounce them properly?
  • Time: If the answer to the previous questions is “yes”, here time is an important factor for the need to go to the emergency room for immediate medical intervention.

Stroke causes and risk factors

As we mentioned, a stroke occurs due to the formation of a blood clot in the vessels connecting to the brain, and this clot often begins in the heart or lung and then travels through the blood vessels to reach the brain. Oxygen to the brain after a heart attack or other conditions such as carbon monoxide poisoning.

As for the risk factors that increase the risk of injury, and which should be paid attention to the symptoms of stroke in their presence, they include:

Complications of a stroke

As we mentioned earlier, a stroke can develop rapidly, and rapid intervention may be taken to control it Post-stroke symptoms It can be an ongoing problem for a while, due to the inability to move many parts of the body and the loss of control over bodily capabilities, such as:

  • Pneumonia, which can be caused by swallowing difficulties, where food or drink travels down the airway instead of through the digestive tract.
  • Urinary tract infection due to the urine catheter that is used with a stroke patient due to his inability to control urination.
  • Convulsive seizures, a common condition for stroke patients.
  • Depression, a condition also common for stroke patients.
  • Bedsores, due to staying in bed for a long time.
  • Muscle atrophy in the extremities as a result of not using them for a long time.
  • Deep vein thrombosis in the leg as a result of immobility.

Stroke treatment

After going to the emergency room, as soon as the symptoms of a stroke appear and are recognized by the doctor, he will work to remove the blood clot first with the help of medicines and some medical procedures, as follows:

pharmaceutical

The doctor first injects a medicine called r-tPA or Alteplase in the vein of the arm, this drug works to dissolve and break up the clot to allow normal blood flow to reach the brain, but this medicine must be given within 4-5 hours of the occurrence of the clot, so you must quickly go to the emergency room as soon as you suspect its presence, otherwise this medicine It will not give an effective result.

Mechanical thrombectomy

Clot planer

This procedure is considered the best solution to remove large clots. In this procedure, a wire stent is used through a catheter that is inserted through the artery in the groin, to reach the artery blocked by the clot. This stent works to hold the clot to pull it out, and a special suction device can also be used to withdraw the clot.

For this procedure to be effective, it must be done within 6 hours of the onset of acute stroke symptoms, and it can also be done within 24 hours in some cases, but first a treatment must be given. r-tPA intravenously.

Finally, noticing any abnormal symptoms similar to the symptoms of a stroke that we mentioned, and quickly going to the emergency room or consulting a doctor with whom it is possible to intervene quickly to save the patient’s life, so do not deal with these symptoms as normal symptoms, especially if there is one of the risk factors that we mentioned.

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