Who is prone to stroke?

Stroke is a common disease of the nervous system and one of the three major causes of death in humans. It has high disability and recurrence rates, and places a heavy burden on society and families. Early prevention and timely treatment are very important for stroke patients. For people with risk factors for stroke, raising risk awareness and conducting reasonable intervention and treatment can help reduce the occurrence and harm of stroke.

People who have the following problems are more likely to have a stroke:

1. Hypertension: Hypertension is not only an important risk factor for stroke, but long-term high blood pressure can also cause damage to target organs such as the heart and kidneys. Hypertensive patients should pay more attention to it, intervene in their lifestyle, take medication and monitor their blood pressure. They should not stop taking antihypertensive drugs just because they have no symptoms or their blood pressure is not high today. Otherwise, long-term high blood pressure may bring serious consequences.

2. Diabetes: High blood sugar can cause serious damage to blood vessels, retina, nerves, kidneys and other organs. Diabetic patients need to adopt treatments such as controlling diet, increasing physical activity, and hypoglycemic drugs.

3. Heart disease: patients with rheumatic heart disease, coronary heart disease, and especially atrial fibrillation are prone to thrombus detachment and cerebral embolism, and need to choose anticoagulant drugs under the guidance of a specialist.

4. Hyperlipidemia: Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol is the main factor causing atherosclerosis. People with elevated LDL should pay attention to reducing the intake of cholesterol-rich foods such as animal fat and egg yolks. Severe cases require oral statin treatment under the guidance of a doctor.

5. Smoking and drinking: Long-term smoking not only increases the incidence of lung cancer, but also causes great damage to blood vessels throughout the body. It is an important risk factor for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases such as atherosclerosis, cerebral infarction, and coronary heart disease. Drinking, especially excessive drinking, can cause high blood pressure, affect platelet aggregation, and induce acute diseases such as cerebral hemorrhage. Long-term drinking can also promote arteriosclerosis.

6. Hemorheology disorders: When blood viscosity increases (such as increased hematocrit, platelet count, fibrinogen level, etc.), cerebral blood flow decreases, making ischemic stroke more likely to occur.

7. Carotid artery stenosis: Carotid artery atherosclerosis, plaque growth, and stenosis may affect the blood supply to the brain (even if there are no symptoms, treatment is required). Once the plaque falls off and forms a thrombus, it will enter the cerebral blood vessels with the blood flow and cause cerebral embolism. In mild cases, oral medication is used to stabilize the plaque, and in severe cases, endarterectomy or interventional surgery is required.

8. Lack of exercise: Lack of physical activity is not just a bad habit, it is one of the causes of many diseases, and its risk of death is even comparable to that of diabetes. Avoid sitting for long periods of time and stick to aerobic exercise.

9. Obesity or excessive waist circumference: Obese people are often in a state of metabolic disorder and chronic inflammation, which is mutually causal with the so-called "three highs", promoting the occurrence of arteriosclerosis and increasing the risk of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.

10. High homocysteine: Homocysteine ​​is a common indicator during physical examinations. Its increase will increase the risk of stroke. People with hypertension and cardiovascular disease in particular can use folic acid to reduce the risk.

11. Sleep apnea: Sleep apnea refers to the pathological "snoring" that can cause breathing to stop while sleeping. Apnea can cause fluctuations in blood pressure, thereby increasing the risk of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Severe cases require correction devices and ventilator treatment.

How is stroke treated?

After a stroke occurs, 1.9 million brain cells die every minute. You need to race against time to get to the nearest stroke map hospital for reperfusion treatments such as thrombolysis and thrombectomy. The earlier the stroke is treated, the better the brain will recover. After the acute phase of treatment in the hospital stabilizes the condition, the patient needs to undergo rehabilitation treatment as soon as possible and control risk factors to prevent another stroke in the future.

Rehabilitation therapy is very important for stroke patients with residual functional disabilities. Regular rehabilitation therapy can significantly reduce sequelae such as limb paralysis, dysphagia, and language impairment. It should be noted that rehabilitation is not equal to "exercise". Incorrect "exercise" can easily lead to joint and muscle injuries, pain, fractures, abnormal gait and other problems. Therefore, rehabilitation therapy is best carried out in a regular treatment institution.

Prevention of stroke first requires controlling risk factors. For ischemic stroke, antiplatelet aggregation drugs or anticoagulant drugs are usually given, such as aspirin, clopidogrel, warfarin, etc. Aspirin is a classic drug for the prevention and treatment of ischemic stroke, but it may also cause adverse reactions such as gastric ulcers and gastrointestinal bleeding. You must choose the medication under the guidance of a doctor according to your own situation.