Friends, today I want to tell you about a stroke. The number 1 cause of death in the world is cardiovascular diseases, which include stroke. In Russia, about 450 thousand people experience a stroke every year.
Fortunately, a healthy lifestyle can often help prevent this condition. And I will write about this in my blog.
The main problem is that most of us do not know why a stroke occurs, how to reduce the risks of its occurrence, and what to do if it does occur to increase the chances of a speedy recovery.
Recently I got acquainted with the ORBI charity foundation, which helps families of patients with stroke. There is a lot of useful information on the fund’s website, go to.
In addition to helping specific people, the Foundation holds Health Days in organizations: specialists of the fund check employees for the purpose of early diagnosis of stroke and identifythe risks of its development. If you want to do the same in your company, detailed information in this presentation: Health Day.
IMPORTANT to know: in order to survive a stroke with the least possible losses, you need to be in the hands of doctors as soon as possible. Therefore, as soon as you find symptoms of a stroke in yourself or your loved ones, immediately call an ambulance. Don’t waste any time: you have three hours to save your brain.
Stroke myths:
- Stroke cannot be prevented due to genetic predisposition
Indeed, the hereditary risk factor is one of those that medicine cannot yet influence. However, the contribution of genetics to vascular accidents does not exceed 15–20%. A person’s life expectancy and quality of life and, therefore, the risk of developing a stroke are more influenced by lifestyle. Therefore, stroke prevention is the most effective strategy for reducing the level of not only cerebrovascular (i.e., traumatic brain vessels), but also all other diseases.
- Smoking does not affect your risk of stroke
It has been proven that smoking increases the risk of stroke by 2,5-5 times. Moreover, the likelihood of getting a heart attack or stroke increases depending on your daily dose of nicotine: the risk of many smokers is 2 times higher than that of few smokers. Moreover, 40% of stroke patients smoked. A year after quitting tobacco, the danger of a brain catastrophe is halved, and 5 years after the “tie-up”, a kind of cleansing occurs at all: by this time, your smoky past will no longer be able to influence you.
- After a stroke, a person is permanently disabled
Indeed, in 80% of people who have suffered a stroke, vital functions are impaired. This can be complete paralysis or paralysis of the left / right parts of the body, individual limbs, complete or partial loss of speech, problems with thinking, swallowing, etc. Hence the disability. But often a stroke happens to those who already have it. This is a disability caused by cardiovascular disease. They could have developed long before a brain catastrophe. Every fourth patient gets into a hospital bed with myocardial infarction or diabetes mellitus, and atrial fibrillation may also be included in the package. And only 3% of patients diagnosed with a stroke are admitted to doctors without additional cardiovascular diseases. So once again remember about a healthy lifestyle.
- You can’t survive more than two strokes
After suffering a stroke within 5 years, repeated intracerebral catastrophe develops in 35–45% of victims. And the consequences of each attack are more serious than the previous one. But you can survive the second and even the third stroke. Prescription – in adequate secondary prevention: do not shy away from treatment and follow all the recommendations of your doctor.
- Stroke is a disease of the elderly
According to the classification of the World Health Organization, the age of up to 44 is considered young, 45–59 is average, 60–74 is elderly, 75–89 is senile, people over 89 are called centenarians. If this statement (“stroke is a disease of the elderly”) were true, then only people over 75 years old would have a stroke. However, according to Russian doctors, in 2010 this disease most often developed in women at the age of almost 70 years, and in men 6 years earlier – at 64 years old. Stroke in young people (up to 45 years old), according to the international study Steps Stroke 2007, which included more than 5 thousand patients, was 11%. A similar study was conducted by Russian doctors: among 1 patients diagnosed with a stroke in Moscow hospitals from 072 to 2005, there were 2012% of young people (from 9 to 18 years old). Moreover, until 44, there were 2009%, and over the next three years the figure rose to 8,5%. This means that the stroke is getting younger.
- Children cannot have a stroke
Unfortunately, even the smallest can become victims of stroke. In rare cases, it can happen in babies even in the womb. According to researchers, children of the first month of life get sick with this ailment as often as adults aged 50–55 years. According to the Canadian Pediatric Stroke Registry, 100 out of 2,7 cases per year are due to pediatric ischemic stroke. And the National Hospital Discharge Survey gives a figure of 7,8 cases. On average, stroke in children under 18 occurs no more than 1% of the total statistics. This means that at least 4 children and adolescents suffer strokes in Russia every year.
- Stroke only threatens men
Several years ago, the Russian Territorial Population Stroke Registry conducted a study and found that out of 5 million Russians in 15 regions of Russia, 12,5 thousand people had a stroke (that is, 0,24%). Among them were 47% of men and 53% of women.
- If it becomes bad, it is better to lie down, an ambulance is in case of emergency.
This is one of the most bitter myths, with extremely dire consequences. Up to 80% of brain cells die within the first 6 hours of an attack. Therefore, the sooner you start treatment, the more cells you can save and the less global the consequences of a stroke will be. Moreover, the main results of treatment can be achieved only within the first three hours after the onset of a stroke.
- It doesn’t matter which hospital you go to
A stroke patient should be treated at regional vascular centers. They can be found all over Russia. These centers have all the necessary equipment and work with top-level specialists. They provide patients with comprehensive rehabilitation: they restore the motor, sensitive and even brain post-stroke apparatus.