What is a Stroke?
Stroke is one of the most important health problems despite all the advances in medicine and is a sudden onset of damage to the brain tissue as a result of obstruction of blood flow in a part of the brain or leakage of blood from the brain vessel. 80% of strokes are due to vascular occlusion (one of the vessels providing blood flow to the brain is suddenly blocked with a clot), and 20% are due to bleeding (one of the brain vessels suddenly ruptures and blood leaks into the brain tissue). There is a need to raise awareness about stroke, which is still the third cause of death in many countries after cardiovascular diseases and cancer, and is the most common cause of disability and the second most common cause of dementia after Alzheimer's disease.
What is the Frequency?
Although the incidence varies from country to country, statistics reveal that one in every 6 people around the world will have a stroke at some point in their lives. Looking at today's figures, one person has a stroke every two seconds, and one person dies every 6 seconds. According to the death data of the Turkish Statistical Institute, 36280 people died due to stroke in our country in 2018, and it is the third most common cause of all deaths after cardiovascular diseases and cancer, with a rate of 8.6%. In other words, in 2018, one person died due to stroke every 14.5 minutes in our country. It is also stated that there are an average of 130 thousand new stroke cases every year in our country and approximately 190 thousand people continue to live with the complications of stroke.
What are the symptoms?
Speech impairment, one or two strokes. Sudden loss of vision in one eye, double vision, asymmetry in the face, drooping in the corner of the mouth, as well as loss of strength or numbness in the arm or leg, especially on one side of the body (unilateral), loss of balance or coordination are the most important clinical signs of stroke.
What Should a Patient and a Relative Do?
Stroke; It should be considered as a "brain attack" just like a heart attack. It is an emergency. Patients and their relatives need to recognize this event. In other words, when there is a speech disorder or unilateral loss of strength, you already know that you have had a stroke. Our people generally know that the patient is usually kept waiting for a while with thoughts such as pouring cold water or waiting a while for it to pass. However, medical help is required quickly and without wasting time. We express this situation as 'time is the brain'. In other words, every minute lost means the death of millions of cells in the brain. It is vital to make an early diagnosis and start treatment. It should not be forgotten that there is no turning back after the brain is damaged. Being late further aggravates the permanent damage to the brain and body. For this reason, if you think that you or someone close to you has had a stroke, you should immediately contact the nearest health institution.
What is Done in the Treatment?
Vascular The first 4.5 hours are very important in the treatment of strokes due to obstruction. The earlier intervention in stroke, the less brain damage. The most important method in vascular occlusions; Within the first 4.5 hours after the onset of symptoms, if the patient's medical condition is appropriate, it is a clot-dissolving (thrombolytic) or, in other words, a vascular-opening treatment. The aim of this treatment is to open the clogged vessels by dissolving the clot, thus minimizing the damage to the bloodless brain area and ensuring that the disease is cured with the least possible loss. In recent years, in particular centers; Angiographically, clot removal treatments are applied to patients who do not meet the clot dissolving treatment criteria, or who do not respond to this treatment, or who are expected to not respond to this treatment.
In recent years, it has started to be used in the treatment of stroke patients that develop due to cerebral hemorrhage. Early surgical closure or angiographic embolization (occlusion) of the ruptured blood vessel is life-saving. If the bleeding is a relatively minor self-limiting bleeding due to high blood pressure, it should be followed up in centers where blood pressure and vital functions can be closely monitored.
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