Brain attack is the third leading cause of death and the leading cause of disability in the United States. The Framingham Heart Study estimates 500,000 people suffer a brain attack each year. Brain attack accounts for one out of every 15 deaths in the United States. Those who suffer a brain attack live with varying degrees of disability. Approximately 31 percent of those who have a first brain attack die within a year.
Most patients die within twelve years of their first brain attack.
While brain attack and heart attack are similar in that both are life-threatening emergencies requiring immediate care, they are not similar in at least one important way. Some symptoms of a heart attack, a sudden severe chest pain and difficulty breathing, are hard to ignore. Symptoms of a brain attack may be less dramatic and can be mistaken for signs of other conditions. In reality, these symptoms can suggest a serious medical emergency. These treatments fall into several categories.