Paralysis Resource Guide - (Page 52) CONDITIONS STROKE A stroke occurs when the blood supply to the brain is suddenly blocked or when a blood vessel in the brain bursts. Deprived of oxygen, nerve cells in the affected area of the brain can’t function and die within minutes. A person with loss of blood flow to the heart is said to be having a heart attack; similarly, a person with loss of blood flow to the brain or sudden bleeding in the brain can be said to be having a “brain attack.” Stroke is a “disability in leading cause of long-term the United States. About 4,500,000 stroke survivors are alive today. ” Although stroke is a disease of the brain, it can affect the entire body, including cognitive and memory deficits, speech problems, emotional difficulties, daily living problems and pain. Paralysis is a common outcome of stroke, often on one side of the body (hemiplegia). The paralysis or weakness may affect only the face, an arm or a leg, or it may affect one entire side of the body and face. A person who suffers a stroke in the left hemisphere of the brain will show right-sided paralysis, or paresis. Likewise, a person with a stroke in the right hemisphere will show deficits on the left side of the body. There are four main types of stroke. Cerebral thrombosis and cerebral embolism are the most common, accounting for about 70–80 percent of all strokes. They’re caused by clots that plug an artery. Cerebral and subarachnoid hemorrhages are caused by ruptured blood vessels. They have a much higher fatality rate than strokes caused by clots. Ischemia is the term used to describe the loss of oxygen and nutrients for brain cells when there is inadequate blood flow. Ischemia ultimately leads to infarction, the death of brain cells, which are eventually replaced by a fluid-filled cavity (or infarct) in the injured brain. 52
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