Summary
A stroke is a medical emergency. There are two types - ischemic and hemorrhagic. Hemorrhagic stroke is the less common type. It happens when a blood vessel breaks and bleeds into the brain. Within minutes, brain cells begin to die. Causes include a bleeding aneurysm, an arteriovenous malformation (AVM), or an artery wall that breaks open.
Symptoms of stroke are
- Sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg (especially on one side of the body)
- Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding speech
- Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes
- Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
- Sudden severe headache with no known cause
It is important to treat strokes as quickly as possible. With a hemorrhagic stroke, the first steps are to find the cause of bleeding in the brain and then control it. Surgery may be needed. Post-stroke rehabilitation can help people overcome disabilities caused by stroke damage.
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
Learn More
- Intracerebral Hemorrhage (Washington University, School of Medicine)
- Let's Talk about Hemorrhagic Stroke (American Heart Association) Also in Spanish
- Subarachnoid Hemorrhage (Washington University, School of Medicine)
- Subarachnoid hemorrhage (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Genetics
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Genetics Home Reference: COL4A1-related brain small-vessel disease
(National Library of Medicine)
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Genetics Home Reference: familial porencephaly
(National Library of Medicine)
Clinical Trials
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Intracranial Hemorrhages
(National Institutes of Health)
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
(National Institutes of Health)
Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
Patient Handouts
- Preventing stroke (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Stroke - discharge (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish