What Causes Strokes?

@JimmyT - I think how a stroke develops really just depends on the case. Just like heart attacks, some of them are caused by things happening the last few days and some of them take years to fully develop. I would also be interested in hearing if there are any tests that can be done.

I have also heard of things called mini strokes. Does anyone know how these work? Is it just some kind of recurring stroke or something completely different from a regular stroke? How dangerous are they?

I have noticed over the last few years a greater interest in preventing strokes. Just recently, the a couple hospitals around my city put up billboards listing the first signs of a stroke and saying that you shouldn't ignore any of the warning signs, because it can lead to more problems later on.

I was never aware of what exactly the cause of a stroke was. Now I can understand why going to a hospital immediately is very important.

From reading the article, it seems like strokes are something that develop rather slowly and then "attack" at once when the oxygen levels reach a certain threshold. If this is correct, is there any way to get tests done that can predict whether a stroke could occur?

@jcraig - I have actually heard that reasonable consumption of alcohol and have a beneficial effect when talking about strokes. I don't know the science behind it, but just drinking one or two drinks each day can reduce the risk of stroke. I would say it is similar to how drinking small amounts can help the liver by cleaning out toxins. Maybe drinking also helps the blood flow somehow.

I think it goes without saying, but regular exercise can also reduce your risk of stroke. When my dad got older, his doctor warned him about his possible risk for having a stroke. Since he had had a couple people in his family with strokes he started to do something about it. Now, he exercises quite a bit and is in great shape. His doctor also says that he is now in the low-risk category for strokes.

@anon24139 - I don't know any specific linkages between alcohol and strokes, but I could see a possible connection. Whenever you drink alcohol it affects the blood, because part of the normal liquid is replaced with ethanol. I don't know whether or not alcohol could cause loss of oxygen to certain parts of the brain, but it seems plausible.

I would say that alcohol's effect on the heart could also come into play. Alcoholics and people who drink a lot tend to have weaker hearts. Because of this, I could definitely see where the brain could end up with less blood and oxygen than it is supposed to have. If anyone has any more information about alcohol and strokes, I would be interested to hear about it.

Sometimes strokes run in a person's family. There is some sort of genetic mutation that places people at an increased risk for stroke.

My friend's husband died of a hemorrhagic stroke. He had an aneurysm that ruptured, and it bled into his brain.

His father had died of the same thing, and so had his grandfather. All were in their thirties when they died, and two of them were the exact same age when they had strokes.

Certain medications can increase your risk of having a stroke. Birth control pills are notorious for this, and the risk is greater if you are older than thirty-five or a smoker.

My sister's doctor refused to renew her prescription for birth control pills once she turned thirty-five, because she was also a smoker. She didn't want to quit, so her husband had a vasectomy.

I really wish that she could find a way to quit smoking. Even though she is no longer on the pill, I know that being a smoker puts her at a higher risk of having a stroke someday.

@orangey03 – Did she go through any type of rehabilitation? It seems like she should have regained more abilities in that amount of time if she had.

I read a lot of stroke information after my grandmother suffered one ten years ago. One thing that always came up in every article was how important it was for patients to keep going to therapy classes. It's especially crucial for the first few months, but even after that, it should be continued.

Your brain has to relearn the simple things, like how to say certain words and how to move your limbs around. Sometimes, it's like starting over from childhood.

My aunt did not seek stroke treatment quickly enough, and she is much worse off than she would have been if she had gotten to the hospital sooner. She was staying at a casino when she noticed that one side of her mouth had turned down, and she could not straighten it out.

Since she was on vacation, she hesitated to go to the hospital. She waited hours before finally driving herself there, and by then, she had lost the ability to speak clearly.

Days after being hospitalized, she could only utter one word. She had lost the use of her right arm.

That was two years ago. Now, she still has a limited vocabulary, though she can say more than one word. She has limited use of her right arm, though its function has improved a little.

can little or excessive consumption of alcohol also cause stroke? and to what degree does smoking affect stroke?