The treatment goals in the early stage of stroke

Written by Tang Bo
Neurology
Updated on September 17, 2024
00:00
00:00

Stroke includes hemorrhagic and ischemic types. Whether it is hemorrhagic or ischemic, hospitalization is necessary during the acute phase. Depending on the patient's condition, if it is hemorrhagic, the amount of bleeding should be considered to decide whether to opt for surgical treatment or conservative treatment. If it is ischemic, and the treatment is initiated within the therapeutic time window, that is within 4.5 hours, thrombolytic therapy can be administered, which may potentially reverse the symptoms of the stroke. If the time window is missed, then conservative treatment is required. Acute cerebral infarction in its acute phase can potentially worsen, so the primary goal of acute phase treatment is to stabilize the condition. After stabilization, rehabilitation and physical therapy can gradually improve the patient's symptoms.

Other Voices

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhang Hui
Neurology
1min 12sec home-news-image

What is a stroke?

Stroke primarily refers to cerebrovascular disease. Acute onset of stroke usually presents with focal neurological deficits, mainly divided into ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes. Ischemic stroke, primarily referring to cerebral infarction, occurs due to an interruption in the blood supply to the brain, causing vessel occlusion and resulting in various clinical syndromes. Clinically, it presents rapidly with symptoms such as limb paralysis, slurred speech, and facial drooping. The pathogenesis of ischemic stroke is caused by central arteriosclerosis of large vessels. Additionally, stroke also includes cerebral embolism, mainly referring to atrial fibrillation-induced emboli from wall-attached thrombi, and other foreign bodies causing embolic blockage, leading to necrosis of brain tissue. Stroke also encompasses hemorrhagic stroke, with a typical condition being cerebral hemorrhage, which is due to long-term hypertension causing hyaline degeneration of the small arterial walls, eventually leading to necrosis and rupture with bleeding, resulting in neurological deficits.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Tang Bo
Neurology
42sec home-news-image

The difference between stroke and cerebral hemorrhage

Stroke includes hemorrhagic stroke and ischemic stroke. Hemorrhagic stroke refers to cerebral hemorrhage, and ischemic stroke refers to cerebral infarction. Thus, they are included in the category of stroke. If symptoms similar to stroke occur, such as facial droop and limb weakness, along with a sudden increase in blood pressure, it is essential to go to the hospital immediately. The first step should be a cranial CT scan to determine whether it is a hemorrhagic or ischemic stroke, to guide further different treatments. Therefore, one must go to the hospital promptly if such symptoms appear.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhang Hui
Neurology
48sec home-news-image

Clinical manifestations of stroke

Firstly, the patient may experience aphasia, such as not understanding others' conversations and being unable to accurately express their own opinions. Signs of facial paralysis, such as a skewed mouth, drooling, and nasolabial fold, may also appear. Secondly, limb paralysis is a common clinical symptom, generally presenting as hemiplegia. There may also be hemisensory disturbances, such as numbness on one side of the body. Thirdly, patients may experience a decline in cognitive functions, exhibiting slow reactions, reduced memory capabilities, and decreased computational skills. If a stroke affects the posterior circulation, the patient may experience symptoms such as dizziness, double vision, and hemianopia.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Tang Bo
Neurology
1min 3sec home-news-image

The treatment goals in the early stage of stroke

Stroke includes hemorrhagic and ischemic types. Whether it is hemorrhagic or ischemic, hospitalization is necessary during the acute phase. Depending on the patient's condition, if it is hemorrhagic, the amount of bleeding should be considered to decide whether to opt for surgical treatment or conservative treatment. If it is ischemic, and the treatment is initiated within the therapeutic time window, that is within 4.5 hours, thrombolytic therapy can be administered, which may potentially reverse the symptoms of the stroke. If the time window is missed, then conservative treatment is required. Acute cerebral infarction in its acute phase can potentially worsen, so the primary goal of acute phase treatment is to stabilize the condition. After stabilization, rehabilitation and physical therapy can gradually improve the patient's symptoms.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Zhang Hui
Neurology
1min 9sec home-news-image

What is a stroke?

The English term for 脑卒中 is stroke, which generally refers to a group of cerebrovascular diseases. These diseases often onset acutely and mainly consist of two types. The first type is ischemic stroke, which includes diseases like cerebral thrombosis, watershed infarction, cerebral infarction, and cerebral embolism. The second type is hemorrhagic stroke, which primarily includes cerebral hemorrhage and subarachnoid hemorrhage among other bleeding-related disorders. Regardless of the type, the onset of stroke is very sudden, and patients rapidly develop severe neurological deficits. For example, a patient may experience sudden slurred speech, paralysis of one side of the body, or numbness and weakness on one side. There will inevitably be obvious symptoms like dizziness, headache, nausea, vomiting, and stiffness of the neck. If a stroke is suspected, it is crucial to rush to the hospital immediately. Doctors will make an accurate diagnosis and provide appropriate treatment based on the patient's medical history and cranial CT scans.