Short answers, pulled from the story.
A stroke is a medical condition in which blood flow to a part of the brain is reduced or blocked, causing cell death. The two main types are ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. About 87% of strokes are ischemic and the rest are hemorrhagic.
The most reliable warning signs are sudden face weakness, an arm that drifts downward, and abnormal speech, which together raise the likelihood of a stroke by a factor of 5.5. FAST stands for facial droop, arm weakness, speech difficulty, and time to call emergency services. The revised BE FAST adds balance and eyesight to catch posterior circulation strokes.
In 2023-15 million people worldwide had a stroke. In 2021, strokes were the third biggest cause of death, responsible for approximately 10% of total deaths. About half of people who have a stroke live less than one year, and two thirds of cases occur in those over 65 years old.
High blood pressure is the biggest risk factor, accounting for 35 to 50% of stroke risk. Lowering systolic blood pressure by 10 mmHg or diastolic by 5 mmHg reduces stroke risk by about 40%. Other risk factors include atrial fibrillation, high cholesterol, diabetes mellitus, smoking, and obesity.
Ischemic strokes are treated by removing the blockage, either by breaking down the clot with thrombolysis or by removing it mechanically with thrombectomy. Thrombolysis given within three hours of symptom onset gives an overall 10% benefit toward living without disability. Mechanical thrombectomy can be effective within 12 hours and in certain cases up to 24 hours after onset.
Disability affects 75% of stroke survivors enough to reduce their ability to work. Up to 10% develop seizures, about 15% live with urinary incontinence for more than a year, and 50% experience a decline in sexual function. Between 30 and 50% of survivors develop post-stroke depression.