Do You Know You're Having a Stroke? MarketWatch - Nov 25, 2008 Researchers studied 400 patients who were diagnosed at Mayo Clinic's emergency department with either acute ischemic stroke or a transient ischemic attack...
Learned This Week Vancouver Sun, Canada - Nov 29, 2008 Researchers studied 400 patients who were diagnosed at Mayo Clinic's emergency department with either acute ischemic stroke or a transient ischemic attack...
diaDexus Receives CE Mark Certification for the PLAC(R) Test Earthtimes (press release), UK - The PLAC Test is the only blood test cleared by the FDA to assess risk for both coronary heart disease (CHD) and ischemic stroke associated with ...
Cases of stroke complicating heart attack down Reuters UK, UK - Nov 21, 2008 Further, patients with bleeding or "hemorrhagic" stroke were more likely to die while in the hospital than those with ischemic stroke - the kind that ...
Three Clinical Features Defined to Accurately Diagnose TIA MediNEWS.Direct!, India - Nov 25, 2008 Kleindorfer D, Panagos P, Pancioli A, et al. Incidence and short-term prognosis of transient ischemic attack in a population-based study. Stroke. ...
Quintet Of Proteins Forms New, Early-warning Blood Test Before ... Science Daily (press release) - Nov 10, 2008 And they will conduct tests to verify that their study findings also apply to ischemia in stroke. Funding support for this study was provided by Inverness. ...
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Recent News and Articles on the Keywords: stroke + ischemic + attack Related to the article below (Last Update: 8/5/2008)
Fish May Boost Memory, Prevent Stroke WebMD - Aug 4, 2008 The lesion is dubbed "silent" if it developed in someone who has not had a recognized stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA), also called a mini-stroke. ...
NMT Medical Announces Second-Quarter 2008 Financial Results Business Wire (press release), CA - ... randomized, controlled trials have been completed that evaluate the risk-benefit of preventing recurrent stroke and transient ischemic attack (TIA) in ...NMTI
Smartening up about strokes easy as STR London Free Press, Canada - Aug 2, 2008 This signal is called a Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA), and is due to decreased blood supply to the brain. So never take the attitude, "I'll wait and see ...
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Eating Fish May Protect Against Silent Infarcts MedPage Today, NJ - All were free from clinical transient ischemic attack or stroke. Fish consumption was measured using food frequency questionnaires, one administered at ...
Discovery May Lead To Immunization Against Cardiovascular Disease Science Daily (press release) - Jul 31, 2008 Low levels of IgM antibodies against phosphorylcholine - a potential risk marker for ischemic stroke in men. Atherosclerosis, 2008; in press DOI: ...
The Little Alarm That Sounds Before a Stroke Toledo Journal, OH - Jul 23, 2008 A Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA), or mini?stroke, leaves no permanent disability. TIAs produce only mild stroke symptoms, so many of the 250000 to 350000 ...
Time Course of Sleep-related Breathing Disorders in First-Ever Stroke or Transient Ischemic Attack - O PARRA, A ARBOIX, S BECHICH, L GARCIA-EROLES, JM … - American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, 2000 - Am Thoracic Soc ... Care Med., Volume 161, Number 2, February 2000, 375-380 Time Course of Sleep-related
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[PDF]High-dose atorvastatin after stroke or transient ischemic attack - P Amarenco, J Bogousslavsky, A Callahan III, LB … - N Engl J Med, 2006 - einstein.br ... at increased risk for cardiovascular disease, whether they reduce the risk for stroke
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Transient Ischemic Attack: An Important Stroke Warning
A stroke is caused by a blood clot or hemorrhage that reduces blood flow to the brain. Since it is the third leading cause of death in the United States, most of us have heard the term "stroke", and have a pretty good idea what it means. But many of us know little about transient ischemic attacks, or TIAs, which are actually mild versions of stroke.
The symptoms of a transient ischemic attack are generally just that...transient. But the occurrence of a TIA sometimes indicates that a more significant event is on its way. Below, two stroke experts discuss these "mini-strokes" and their significance. What is the difference between a stroke and a transient ischemic attack, or TIA?
RALPH L. SACCO, MD: A stroke will cause some kind of neurological damage that is lasting -- weakness, numbness, tingling, difficulty speaking, slurred speech, or difficulty walking.
A TIA is more mild. It’s transient. Usually the symptoms occur, resolve and are gone. Traditionally, most physicians define a TIA as lasting less than 24 hours, although the new understanding is it may last even less than an hour. A person who has suffered a TIA will have transient neurological symptoms - sudden loss of vision, weakness on one side of the body, numbness, tingling, difficulty speaking, difficulty walking - but it lasts only minutes to hours, and then resolves and the person is back to normal.
How often is the occurrence of a TIA an indication that a stroke is to follow?
DARA JAMIESON, MD: Just like chest pain may be a warning of impending heart attack, a TIA may be a warning of an impending stroke for certain patients. There are people who have one or multiple TIAs and don’t actually go on to have a full stroke within the next year or couple of years, or at all. But a TIA should always be a concern to a patient and physician. It indicates that a patient needs to think about preventing a stroke from occurring sometime in the future.
Who is most at risk for stroke?
RALPH L. SACCO, MD: Actually everybody is at risk for stroke -- young, old, men, women, all different races and ethnic groups -- but there are certain groups that are more at risk than others. Clearly, stroke incidence goes up with age. Also, men have strokes more frequently than women, and African Americans and Hispanics have strokes much more frequently than people from other ethnic groups do.
Do you find that younger people who have TIAs often discount, or ignore their symptoms?
DARA JAMIESON, MD: Younger patients may rationalize their symptoms and say, "Oh, it’s due to a back problem." or "I slept on my arm funny." or "I was just tired and that’s why my speech was slurred." We need to realize that there are certain types of strokes that occur in younger individuals.
There are strokes that are the result of a torn artery, or dissection, that can occur in young people. A TIA can be a forecast of this type of stroke. Migraine can be associated with stroke, as well as recreational drug use, and both these types of strokes are seen in young individuals, as well as in older individuals.
What technically happens during a TIA?
RALPH L. SACCO, MD: During a TIA, or mini-stroke, the blood flow is temporarily interrupted to the brain. Say something blocks an artery for an instant reducing the blood flow to an area of the brain. This can result in a kind of temporary disturbance in the brain. Usually this blood flow is reduced either by a blockage - a hardening of the artery that blocks off over time - or a clot that gets loose and travels to the arteries of the brain. This reduces blood flow and causes the neurological symptoms.
What are the symptoms of a TIA?
DARA JAMIESON, MD: It varies. Weakness on one side of the body is of concern, but it can also be weakness in just the fingers, or weakness in the upper arm, or weakness just in the foot. It doesn’t have to involve the face, arm and leg as is sometimes the case with stroke. This is true too of numbness. Although we think of numbness as a symptom that occurs on one side of the body during a stroke or TIA, it can occur in a very small portion of the body, such as just the hand or the foot.
A person suffering from a TIA may have slurred speech for a period of time -- not just one word, but for minutes. If people say, "Gee, I can’t understand what you’re saying." that may be a warning sign that it could be a TIA. Some people have loss of vision in one eye. Some people may note that they can’t see off to one side - a symptom that is commonly noticed when they keep on bumping into things on one side of them. Difficulty walking can also be a sign of a TIA.
A TIA is a warning sign. It’s a definite risk for stroke and we want people to take these neurological symptoms seriously and get attention immediately.
What are the risk factors for TIA?
RALPH L. SACCO, MD: High blood pressure is the number one risk factor for stroke and TIA. If you have it, get it treated, or reduce it with lifestyle modification.
Diabetes is a risk factor. Cardiac disease, particularly a kind of cardiac disease called atrial fibrillation -- a fancy term for a type of abnormal heart rhythm -- is a risk factor. It, too, can be treated and controlled to reduce the risk of stroke.
Cigarette smoking and heavy alcohol use are both risk factors for stroke and TIA. If you drink too much, clearly that will increase the risk of stroke.
High cholesterol and hardening of the arteries in the neck are also risk factors for stroke and TIA. Physical inactivity is a risk factor. Physical activity - even a twenty-minute walk three times a week - can reduce the risk of stroke and TIA.
What should people do if they suspect they’ve had a stroke or TIA?
RALPH L. SACCO, MD: If it really is a brain attack or a TIA, there may not be evidence. The first thing is recognition. We want everyone to know what the warning symptoms are. If you know you’ve had a TIA, see your doctor, because there are things that should be done in the evaluation of such an individual to prevent a stroke. If you are having symptoms, get medical attention and call 911, because "time is brain." If you wait too long, you may not have the opportunity to get some of the effective treatments for acute stroke.
What tests and treatment can be done for people who have had a TIA?
DARA JAMIESON, MD: The physician will be interested in knowing what’s gone on in the brain, and will get an MRI scan of the brain. Sometimes the physician will get a special MRI scan called an MRA to look at the blood vessels within the brain. Or the physician may order a carotid ultrasound to look at the blood vessels in the neck. Sometimes people with TIAs have blockage of the carotid arteries in the neck that should be operated on. The surgery can prevent further damage and further strokes.
What are your parting thoughts for people about stroke and TIA prevention?
RALPH L. SACCO, MD: I think the key is recognition. Know the warning symptoms of stroke. If you’ve had them, get some medical attention. Also, think about risk factors. You can prevent stroke. There are ways of managing and reducing your risk of stroke by taking simple action, like changing your lifestyle. If everybody just made one positive lifestyle modification, they could reduce the burden of stroke risk in the future.
