This involves
(a) immediate therapy
(b) prevention
(c) rehabilitation
Immediate Therapy
Ischemic Stroke:
Treatment for stroke is very time-dependent.
It is important that your reach a hospital AS SOON AS POSSIBLE once stroke symptoms occur.
Clots can be removed in two ways
- A clot-busting medication can be given to dissolve the clot, but only if you are at the hospital within 3 hours (upto4.5 hours for some patients) of onset of your symptoms.
- Clot can be removed by sucking it out through a catheter inserted via a blood vessel in your arm or leg. This can be done if your reach the hospital before the brain cells have died, which can be from few to several hours.
Treatment is based upon whether there are brain cells that can be saved- and this depends to a large degree on how early you reach the hospital.
Hemorrhagic Stroke:
Type of stroke cannot be recognized without a scan of your brain.
Symptoms of ischemic stroke and hemorrhagic stroke are similar. Therefore- it is important that you reach the hospital as soon as possible.
Treatment of hemorrhage involves early control of blood pressure to reduce the bleeding.
If the bleeding is very large, surgery may be required to avoid pressure on the normal part of brain.
Prevention : See page xx
Rehabilitation : See page yy