World stroke day – 29.10.2014

World stroke day – 29.10.2014

Life Style Changes to Prevent Stroke(Brain attack) Dr.M.A.Aleem.M.D.D.M.,(Neuro). Vice Principal HOD and professor of Neurology. KAPV Government Medical college. MGM Government Hospital Trichy -620017.

Introduction

Stroke has been and continues to be a widespread disease worldwide, afflicting over 15 million people each year. Of those 15 million almost six million die and a further five million are left permanently disabled. A new person suffers a stroke every six seconds.

The lifetime risk of stroke is 1 in 5 for women, 1 in 6 for men Every two seconds, someone in the world suffers a stroke Every six seconds, someone dies of a stroke Every six seconds, someone’s quality of life will forever be changed – they will permanently be physically disabled due to stroke.

World Stroke Day

World Stroke day is observed on October 29 to underscore the serious nature and high rates of stroke raise awareness of the prevention and treatment of the condition, and ensure better care and support for survivors.

Stroke Facts

Stroke (also known as cerebrovascular disease) occurs when a blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked by a clot or bursts. When that happens, part of the brain cannot get the blood and oxygen it needs, so it starts to die. The extent and location of the brain cell damage determines the severity of the stroke, which can range from minimal to catastrophic. Because different areas of the brain control difference functions, the specific effects of a particular stroke depend on which area of the brain is injured. A small stroke in a critical area of the brain can be permanently disabling. Because brain cells do not regenerate, damage to the nerve cells is permanent. Million of brain cells die each minute a stroke is untreated. Ruptured blood vessels cause hemorrhagic or bleeding strokes.
1. The vessel clogs within (ischemic stroke)

2. The vessel ruptures, causing blood to leak into the brain (hemorrhagic stroke)


Ischemic

Ischemic Stroke accounts for about 87 percent of all cases. Ischemic strokes occur as a result of an obstruction within a blood vessel supplying blood to the brain. The underlying condition for this type of obstruction is the development of fatty deposits lining the vessel walls. This condition is called atherosclerosis. These fatty deposits can cause two types of obstruction:

Cerebral embolism refers generally to a blood clot that forms at another location in the circulatory system, usually the heart and large arteries of the upper chest and neck. A portion of the blood clot breaks loose, enters the bloodstream and travels through the brain’s blood vessels until it reaches vessels too small to let it pass. A second important cause of embolism is an irregular heartbeat, known as atria fibrillation. If creates conditions where clots can from in the heart, dislodge and travel to the brain.

Hemorrhagic

Hemorrhagic stroke accounts for about 13 percent of stroke cases. It results from a weakened vessel that ruptures and bleeds into the surrounding brain. The blood accumulates and compresses the surrounding brain tissue. The two type of hemorrhagic stroke are intracerebral hemorrhage or subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Hemorrhagic stroke occurs when a weakened blood vessel ruptures. Two type of weakened blood vessels usually cause hemorrhagic stroke: aneurysms and arteriovenous malformations (AVMs).

An aneurysm is a ballooning of a weakened region of a blood vessel. If left untreated, the aneurysm continues to weaken until it ruptures and bleeds into the brain. An arteriovenous malformation (AVM) is a cluster of abnormally formed blood vessels. Any one of these vessels can rupture, also causing bleeding into the brain.

Stroke Warning Signs

These are the warning signs that someone is having a stroke:

 Sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body
 Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding

 Sudden trouble seeing in one both eyes

 Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination

 Sudden, severe headache with no known cause

If you notice one or more of these signs, don’t wait. Stroke is a medical emergency. Call your emergency medical services 108 and get to a hospital right away!


What causes stroke

 High blood pressure (Hypertension is the most common and treatable risk factor in stroke)

 Smoking

 High cholesterol

 Diabetes mellitus

 Obesity

 Sedentary life style

 Atrial fibrillation

 Heart disease

 Carotid artery disease

 Alcohol

It is possible to prevent stroke

 Good control of blood pressure

 Good control of diabetes

 Lower cholesterol

 Regular exercise

 Quit smoking

 Lose weight

 Never ignore a small stroke

Learn How to Prevent a Stroke

Here are six steps anyone can take to reduce the risk and danger of stroke:

1. Know your personal risk factors: high blood pressure, diabetes, and high blood cholesterol.

2. Be physically active and exercise regularly.

3. Maintain a healthy diet high in fruit and vegetable and low in salt to stay a healthy state and keep blood pressure low.

4. Limit alcohol consumption.

5. Avoid cigarette smoke. If you smoke, help to stop now.

6. Learn to recognize the warning signs of a stroke.



DIET:

Diet is one of the important lifestyle factors for the prevention of stroke, because we habitually eat three times a day. As mentioned in the Introduction, the following dietary factors have been related to stroke prevention: reduction of salt intake, increase in fruit and vegetable intake, and decrease in saturated and total fat intake.

Low Salt Diet

If is recommended that salt intake be reduced to less than 5g a day to lower the risk of having a stroke.

1. Salt raises our blood pressure

2. The higher our blood pressure, the higher our risk of stroke

3. Adults should have less than 5grams of salt a day, and children even less
4. It is particularly important than children do not eat too much salt, as blood pressure first starts to rise in childhood

5. Much of the salt we eat is in everyday foods such as bread, sauces, cheese and processed meat, as well as salt added at the table and during cooking.

6. Take time to get used to lower salt food, and you will enjoy it as much, if not more, than salty food.

Increase in the fruit and vegetable intake:

High fruit and vegetable intake reduces stroke incidence and mortality. The mechanism by which high intake of fruits and vegetables prevents stroke may involve the high levels of potassium, antioxidants, phytochemicals, and dietary fiber in these foods, since each of these components has been shown to individually prevent cardiovascular risk factors.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY :

That individuals engaged in physical activity have a 25-30% lower risk of stroke than inactive individuals. This association was mediated through beneficial effects on body weight, blood pressure, serum total cholesterol levels, and glucose levels. Recommended that adults should engage in at least 150 min per week of moderate-intensity or 75 min per week of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity, or an equivalent combination of moderate and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity