Article Medically Reviewed By:
Mitchell S. V. Elkind, MD, MS, FAAN
Assistant Professor, Department of Neurology Columbia University New York, NY
Overview
What Is It?
A stroke—also referred to as a brain attack or apoplexy—occurs when a part of the brain is injured by a disturbance to its blood supply.
A stroke—also referred to as a brain attack or apoplexy—occurs when a part of the brain is injured by a disturbance to its blood supply.
There are two types of stroke. An ischemic stroke, or cerebral infarction, occurs when the flow of blood through an artery supplyingpart of the brain is suddenly interrupted, usually by a clot. A hemorrhagic stroke, or cerebral or subarachnoid hemorrhage, occurs when a blood vessel in the brain bursts, spilling blood into the substance of the brain or into the spaces surrounding the brain.
The term "brain attack" is becoming increasingly common to describe this condition—and it makes sense. A person suffering a loss of blood flow to the heart is said to be having a heart attack, so a person with a loss of blood flow to the brain or sudden bleeding in the brain is having a "brain attack." Deprived of oxygen, nerve cells (neurons) in the affected area of the brain can't function and die within minutes. And when nerve cells can't function, the part of the body controlled by these cells can't function either. Although the healing process can help some patients improve after a stroke, some devastating effects of stroke are often permanent; dead brain cells aren't replaced. Strokes affect different people in different ways, depending on the type of stroke, the area of the brain affected and the extent of the brain injury. Brain injury from a stroke can affect speech and language, motor activity, cognitive ability, behavior, memory and emotions. Paralysis or weakness on one side of the body is common. Stroke is the leading cause of serious adult disability.
More women than men suffer strokes. In 2004, women accounted for 60.8 percent of stroke deaths. And of the 5.8 million stroke victims who are alive today, 2.3 million are males and 3.4 million are females. Of every five deaths from stroke, three occur in women and two in men. This is because the average life expectancy for women is greater than for men, and the highest rates for stroke are in the oldest age groups.
Stroke is often deadly: the condition kills more than 150,000 Americans each year, accounting for one in 16 deaths. Stroke ranks third after heart disease and cancer as a major cause of death in the United States.
The most important risk factors for stroke are hypertension, heart disease, diabetes and cigarette smoking. Other factors that increase your risk of having a stroke include heavy alcohol consumption, high cholesterol levels, migraines (especially with aura), illicit drug use and genetic or congenital conditions (particularly vascular abnormalities).
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