Stroke is a brain injury that occurs when the brain's blood
supply is interrupted. Without oxygen and nutrients from blood,
brain tissue starts to die within minutes. Tissue loss in the
brain causes a sudden loss of function. Another term for stroke
is cerebrovascular accident (CVA). Like a heart attack, the
early emergency treatment is given the better the recovery.
Acute treatment is beginning to positive results if done within
4½ to 6 hours of the start of stroke. The types of stroke
include: An ischemic stroke most often occurs when blood flow to
the brain becomes blocked. One of the following events may cause
this blockage: - The most common cause is a build-up of fatty
substances along an artery's inner lining that causes it to
narrow, reduces its elasticity, and decreases its blood flow. -
A clot forms in an artery supplying the brain, usually one
affected by atherosclerosis . This clot is called a thrombus. -
Blockage can also be caused by a blood clot from another part of
the body (often the heart) t