Stroke
Alternate Names : Brain Attack, Cerebrovascular Accident, CVA
What are the signs and symptoms of the condition?
Strokes can cause many different signs and symptoms, depending on the area of
the brain that is damaged. Some people have multiple areas of damage. Most
strokes begin suddenly, develop rapidly, and cause brain damage within minutes.
Signs or symptoms may include:
problems with movement, such as weakness, clumsiness, or paralysis.
These are often on only one side of the body. In some cases, people may only
have weakness or clumsiness in their hand. In other cases, one entire half of
the body becomes paralyzed.
headache
numbness or a lack of feeling, which is also often on only one side
of the body
speech impairments, including
slurred speech or difficulty finding the correct word
difficulty doing math or writing
difficulty understanding speech or writing
inability to recognize family members or common objects
dementia, a condition that affects memory, understanding, and the
ability to carry out the normal activities of daily life
visual impairment,
including
blurred vision or total vision loss
hearing impairment
personality changes
difficulty swallowing
balance problems, known as ataxia
coma
the inability to breathe on one's own. This may require a person to be put
on an artificial breathing machine, or
ventilator.
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