Stroke - Brain Attack and a Medical Emergency - Research Paper Example

Approximately, 30% of patients admitted to hospital with an acute stroke, die within the first 1-3 months and approximately 50% of those who survive, suffer significant long-term disability which will require individualized and specialist support2,3. In England and Wales, over 130,000 people have a stroke every year. That’s one person every five minutes4. Anyone can have a stroke, even children and babies, but usually, older people who have crossed 65 or so are more prone to strokes.The estimated cost of stroke to the NHS and Social Services in the UK is around £2.

8 billion per year, nearly twice that of coronary heart disease5. The incidence of stroke in Scotland is higher than anywhere in the UK. Hospitals based in Scotland suggest that the annual incidence is approximately 3 per 1,000 of the population and that the prevalence is 10 per 1,000 of the population6.An Ischaemic Stroke is the more common kind and occurs when a blood clot temporarily interrupts the blood flow to the brain by blocking or clogging the blood vessels carrying blood to the brain.

Such strokes are also called “transient Ischaemic attacks or Mini Stokes”. (Medline Plus, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.)The second kind is what is termed as Hemorrhagic Stroke and it occurs when cerebral blood vessels burst and blood leaks into the brain. These strokes can be classified as intra-cerebral where the bleeding occurs within the brain or subarachnoid haemorrhage where the bleeding takes place between the brain and the inside of the skull. The amount of damage to the brain largely depends on the amount of pressure exerted by the clot occupying the space.

There is a continuous association between both systolic and diastolic blood pressures and the risk of ischemic stroke8.