M.D. Dr. Campbell is Assistant Professor of Medicine, Department of Neurology, University of Texas Medical School at Houston. With this approach, most stroke victims simply died. Those who survived faced the challenge of years of rehabilitation and, often, permanent brain damage or other disability. Today, however, there are several new treatments available that help to restore blood flow to the brain and, as a result, minimize damage. A stroke happens when blood flow to the brain is blocked by a blood clot in a brain artery or because a brain blood vessel has burst.
Obstruction is the more common cause.
Stroke symptoms include headache, mental confusion, inability to speak, loss of consciousness and paralysis. When a stroke occurs, part or all of the brain is deprived of oxygen. Without oxygen, affected nerve cells in the brain stop functioning and begin to die within minutes. This is a disaster for the body because dead brain cells cannot be replaced. Because the brain controls the rest of the body, the death of certain brain cells often means a loss of functioning elsewhere.