Vascular Disease Vascular Disease Basics

How to Spot a Stroke

What are some of the warning signs that you might be having a stroke?
There are many warning signs of a stroke. I think the important thing to keep in mind is that they happen quickly A stroke does not occur over a long period of time; it's a sudden event. Some of the more common warning signs of stroke would include sudden weakness or numbness on one side of your body.

Another warning sign might be difficulty with speech, either your speech is slurred or you're unable to speak normally as you have in the past. Someone who becomes suddenly confused could be having a stroke. Some patients actually may lose some or all of their vision in one or both eyes as a warning sign of stroke.

Other warning signs of stroke could be difficulty walking, where you may have a minor weakness or a minor numbness that prevents you from maintaining your normal balance.

Sometimes patients have these symptoms and they last only a few minutes, and that's what we call a TIA or a transient ischemic attack. Even if it goes away quickly, it's very important to see a doctor or go to a hospital quickly. because that is a warning sign that you could have a more severe stroke in the near future.

What should be your first action if you suspect that you're having a stroke?
Your first action should be to call 911. A delay in getting to the hospital will make it less likely that we'll be able to give you a treatment for your stroke. And even though we only have one acute treatment for stroke, we can only give it to patients who get to the hospital very early, usually within a couple of hours of the onset of their symptoms.

The one treatment that has been approved for stroke is called tPA, and it's what we call a clot-buster. It's the same type of drug that we use for patients who have a heart attack. It actually dissolves the clot that is causing the blockage in the artery in your brain. It is only good for the ischemic stroke where there is no bleeding in your brain.

What happens after you've had the stroke?
There is tremendous variation in the severity of the symptoms for each individual patient. About half of all patients who have a stroke will have a moderate to severe stroke that will leave them with permanent symptoms that will affect their life. About another 25 percent will have very mild symptoms that will allow them to live a relatively normal life. But about 20 to 30 percent of patients will die from their stroke within one year.

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