Stroke Archive

People who've never experienced wooziness should call 911 if the symptom comes on suddenly or severely, especially if it's accompanied by other symptoms. However, a person who has experienced wooziness before or been unwell recently should sit down, have a drink of water or juice, and rest for 10 to 15 minutes. If the feeling of wooziness persists, if other symptoms develop, or if it's hard to get up without feeling faint, one should call 911.

People who have had shingles have a 30% increased risk for heart disease and stroke, says a new Harvard study. Learn more about the risk.

A 2022 observational study that included more than 200,000 people found that those who'd had shingles at some point had a 30% higher long-term risk for a major cardiovascular event, compared with people who didn't have shingles.

Sometimes people miss the symptoms of life-threatening conditions such as a heart attack, a stroke, atrial fibrillation, or a pulmonary embolism. To detect the warning signs, people should pay attention to sudden, new symptoms, especially if they include shortness of breath, chest pain, heart palpitations, lightheadedness, confusion, weakness, fatigue, fainting, or a terrible headache. Someone experiencing any of these symptoms should call 911. If symptoms aren't sudden or intense, and people aren't sure if they warrant emergency help, they should call their doctor.

Stroke is the most common cause of aphasia, a language-based brain disorder that can affect speaking, understanding, reading, and writing. But the brain has the ability to rewire brain cells and recover lost function through a process known as neuroplasticity. Therapy with a speech-language pathologist facilitates this recovery, which is greatest in the first several months after a stroke. Stroke survivors who keep working on their language processing problems can continue to improve for years.

Stroke survivors who take their blood pressure drugs as prescribed may be less likely to experience a serious fall compared with those who don't take their medications on schedule.

Gout strikes when too much uric acid builds up in the body and triggers severe pain, swelling, and redness in one or more joints, often in the big toe. New research suggests that an episode may increase the risk for a heart attack or stroke over the following two months.

A new study suggests that older adults who maintain an high level functional fitness have a lower their risk of heart attack, heart failure, and stroke compared with those who are not as fit.

Cervical artery dissection, a rare but potentially devastating cause of stroke, is a tear in the lining of one of the main arteries that carry blood to the brain. Any sudden, jerky neck movements, including chiropractic neck adjustments and whiplash from a car accident, can cause such a tear. Cervical artery dissections also have been reported after strenuous weight lifting, tennis, head-flinging dance moves, yoga, and roller coaster rides. The dissections occur in only about three in 100,000 people per year, but they are one of the most common causes of stroke in younger people.

Statins continue to be a first-line treatment for many people at risk of heart attacks and strokes. They help reduce cholesterol levels, reduce plaque build-up, and protect against plaque rupturing, and fight inflammation. Possible side effects are often mild, if they occur, and go away after a brief period. Otherwise, people can manage them by changing the dosage or switching to another type of statin, per their doctor's direction.