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In Poland, on average, someone experiences a stroke every eight minutes. However, although the disease is so common, we still pay little attention to it. Too little! Meanwhile, if we knew its symptoms and reacted quickly, we could save not only fitness, but often even life.
70 people – that is a large town – this is the number of cases of stroke in Poland every year. Just over half, as many as 30, will survive. the sick are not that lucky. The most common reason for a stroke is something that can be changed, controlled or modified: high blood pressure, poor diet, love of stimulants, lack of exercise, stress, unhygienic lifestyle. And disregarding your own health – untreated or poorly treated cardiovascular diseases and arrhythmias can end tragically.
Stroke at a young age
This is what we think of a stroke. Partly because statistics teach us that: the most common victims of stroke are those in their XNUMXs.
– Stroke is the second leading cause of death in people over 60. One in six elderly people experiences this disease, says Prof. dr hab. n. med. Anna Member, chairman of the Section of Brain Vascular Diseases of the Polish Neurological Society, head of the XNUMXnd Neurological Clinic of the Institute of Psychiatry and Neurology in Warsaw. “But that doesn’t mean a stroke can only happen to someone who is older.” On the contrary: it also happens to younger (and sometimes much younger) age people.
The best example is Małgorzata Chrobak, MA in Animal Science. Today she is 29 years old. A stroke happened to her when she was 24.
– I defended my master’s thesis in June, but because I was unable to find a job in Poland, I moved quickly to London – he recalls. – However, I took with me severe headaches that started already in Poland. However, I did not seek the help of a doctor, I took painkillers and it was enough. Who would go to the doctor with something as trivial as a headache?
However, one day she woke up at 6 am, her left hand was completely limp. At first she thought she was sleeping badly and there was pressure on her blood vessels; the hand is simply quite numb and it will recover. However, an hour passed and the hand still did not recover.
– I asked my roommate to call an ambulance – says Małgorzata. “It came, but the paramedic said nothing and said to call again if it got worse. After an hour, I lost the use of my left leg and the ambulance had to come again.
The girl was taken to the hospital. There, the diagnosis was not made immediately. Why? Because the girl seemed too young for a stroke … The result was a deterioration in her condition, and she was in a coma that lasted many days. When the cause of the trouble was finally discovered, it turned out that Małgorzata had first an ischemic stroke, and then another, a hemorrhagic stroke – because first one of the blood vessels in her brain blocked, and then it burst under pressure.
Grzegorz Jabłoński, a psychiatrist, also suffered a stroke completely unexpectedly. He was then 43 years old. Active, professionally active, he neglected his health a bit: he worked too much, did not care about rest. Today he adds: a shame to admit, but I did not even measure the pressure. It seemed to me that it could happen to anyone, but it cannot happen to me. Meanwhile…
“It was late January,” she recalls. – Overall, I felt good, I was just a little tired. That day, in the evening, I passed out in the bathroom before taking a bath. I lost consciousness for a while. Only my partner found me.
She wanted to call an ambulance, but before she did, Grzegorz regained consciousness. He ignored the accident, took a bath and went to sleep. Unfortunately, in the morning he was still not feeling well, so he went to his hospital where he found a doctor and asked for an examination. He was unlucky: the Doppler examination could not be performed in the hospital. The date of the examination was scheduled in another hospital in a few days – except that the next day Grzegorz woke up with the left side of his body paralyzed: his arm and leg were disabled. The intonation of his speech also changed, although this change was audible mainly to others, Grzegorz himself did not notice it.
Ischemic stroke and hemorrhagic stroke
– A stroke can happen in two ways. The first is when the blood vessels that carry oxygen and nutrients to the brain are blocked by a blood clot – says Anna Member. – As a result, part of the brain is cut off from the oxygen supply and it dies. This is called ischemic stroke. The second is a hemorrhagic stroke, commonly known as a cerebral haemorrhage: it occurs when a blood vessel passing through the brain is broken or damaged. Contrary to popular belief, ischemic stroke is more common, accounting for as much as 80 percent. strokes.
In both cases, the symptoms are almost the same, except that in the case of a hemorrhagic stroke, a very strong, sudden headache often occurs.
Symptoms of a stroke
There are times when a stroke occurs suddenly, but there are also times when symptoms precede it. Doctors call them transient cerebral ischemia. Let us pay close attention to them, the more careful that they do not seem to be dangerous at first … We should be alerted to such phenomena as hand inertia or muscle weakness, causing the problem to be lifting even a small object. Also of concern is tingling in the limbs on one side or numbness in the limbs, as well as visual, speech, difficulty swallowing, or a sudden, severe headache. Muscle paralysis can cause a strange, unnatural frown on the face and cause speech to become slurred and slurred.
If we spot a person suspected of having a stroke (note: stroke patients are usually conscious), the initial diagnosis (80% of which is accurate) can be helped by the FAST test developed by doctors. Its name comes from the words face, arm, speach and time, meaning face, hands, speech and time. F (face) – if the patient’s expression seems unnatural, ask him to smile, if while smiling the corner of his mouth on one side is drooping, you may suspect a stroke. A (hands) – ask the patient to close their eyes and raise their hand, when dealing with a stroke, the hand will drop. S (speech) – let the person say one sentence, eg ” dumplings are my favorite food”. If he cannot pronounce the words clearly, this may be a sign of a stroke. T (time) – notify the ambulance as soon as possible, every minute counts.
Rehabilitation after a stroke
Even a quarter of a century ago, medicine was poor at treating strokes and their effects. It was believed that the sick cannot be helped, so it is not worth investing too much in their treatment. Fortunately, today we think otherwise. Firstly, a stroke is treated as a life-threatening condition and the patient is immediately hospitalized in special stroke units, which are part of the neurology department. This enables patients to make a quick and accurate diagnosis, which is crucial in preventing damage from stroke. This is so important because there is no special medicine that can save a stroke patient. In fact, the success of therapy depends on the general medical knowledge, intuition and experience of the staff.
– Unfortunately, despite this, a dozen or so percent of people still die in the first month of ischemic stroke – says Anna Member. – More victims are taken by a hemorrhagic stroke: as much as 30-40% of patients.
However, the fact that we survived does not automatically mean a happy ending. Rather hard work and a long struggle to regain fitness. Małgorzata Chrobak, after spending two months in the hospital, was referred for rehabilitation. Several months of exercise allowed her to get to her feet, although she could only walk slowly and on the nurse’s arm. The hand was still limp. Małgorzata decided to continue treatment in Poland, lived with her father in Inowrocław, was retired and could take care of her. He has been rehabilitating here for five years. Her father takes her to private procedures, because you have to wait a long time for those from the National Health Fund. Results? The hand is still out of order. The leg cooperates, but Małgosia may forget about high heels. Fortunately, she managed to arrange a social pension.
Grzegorz Jabłoński is in a better shape: he has been rehabilitating for a year and has a chance to regain full fitness. He regains power in the leg, although the arm returns to fitness more slowly. But while his body took the disease better, his soul took it less.
– Apart from my paresis, I had problems with concentration, I couldn’t read or even watch TV – recalls Grzegorz. – I took the disease very badly. So much so that the doctors found that I was depressed and started taking antidepressants, which helped me a lot.
Grzegorz discharged himself from the hospital at his own request after five weeks. Now he goes to exercise every day at the rehabilitation day ward in Łódź. Classes last from 9 to 13. As soon as he gets back on his feet, he wants to go back to work. It will only mean a real recovery for him.
– As many as half of the patients who survive a stroke have a chance to be almost independent in terms of basic life activities – says Anna Member. – However, the result depends on how early rehabilitation is introduced.
In addition to the often months or years of rehabilitation, a very important element of treatment – and at the same time preventing recurrences of the disease – is the correct diagnosis of the causes of a stroke. You have to trace the cause and eliminate it. Because if the cause was high blood pressure, you need to start treating it. And if heart rhythm disturbances and paroxysmal atrial fibrillation – it is necessary to stabilize the heart rhythm. It is worth working on lowering cholesterol, introducing vegetables, fruits and fish into the diet, and limiting meat, especially red – as well as minimizing the share of animal fats in the form of cream, butter, and fatty dairy products. It is imperative to quit smoking! Cigarettes put a lot of strain on the circulatory system, raise blood pressure and promote blood clots (especially in combination with oral contraception). It’s also worth learning how to manage stress and fight tension, especially if it is prolonged.
Text: Hanna Mądra