A cerebrovascular accident is also known as a stroke. It is a medical emergency in which the patient must be treated immediately to minimize damage and complications. A cerebrovascular accident is the sudden death of some brain cells caused by lack of or reduced oxygen when blockage or a ruptured artery impair the blood flow to the brain. There are three types of strokes; ischemic stroke, hemorrhagic stroke, and the temporary ischemic attack (TIA), also known as a mini-stroke.
The signs and symptoms of a cerebrovascular accident can include: a very severe headache with vomiting and dizziness; weakness; paralysis of one side of the body with partial or complete loss of voluntary movement or sensation; problems with speech such as slurring, …show more content…
A cerebrovascular accident can be caused by underlying risk factors, such as hypertension, atrial fibrillation, and diabetes. Another cause is an artery being blocked by a clot, this is known as an ischemic stroke. This usually happens after a blood vessel has been narrowed by a hardening of the artery. Bleeding in the brain, known as cerebral hemorrhage, such as an aneurysm can cause a hemorrhagic stroke. A temporary ischemic attack, or mini-stroke is caused by a temporary blockage and symptoms often last less than five minutes. A patient who experiences a mini-stroke should still seek treatment as soon as possible, as this increases their risk of a full blown stroke.
CEREBROVASCULAR ACCIDENT 3
There are basically three stages of treatment for stroke: preventive therapy, such as lowering blood pressure and controlling diabetes to prevent a stroke; acute stroke therapy tries to stop the stroke while it is occurring by dissolving the clot or stopping the bleeding; and post stroke rehabilitation helps the patient with disabilities that arise from the stroke