People are understandably concerned when health conditions or infectious diseases that were once well-managed start increasing again, but proper education and advancements in medicine mean we often see the opposite. Declining rates of smoking, for instance, have led to far fewer people getting lung cancer....READ ORIGINAL & FULL CONTENT FROM SOURCE |
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Ditto for the way serious cases of COVID-19 rapidly declined as the number of people who got vaccinated against the virus increased.
Despite still being the fifth leading cause of death in the United States, stroke is another example of an area we’re seeing improvement. Data from U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that far fewer Americans die of stroke today than in years past. This decrease is due, in part, to improvements in controlling major stroke risk factors such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure.
Significant improvements are still needed, however, as someone in the country is dying of stroke about every three minutes.
There are two main types of stroke. An ischemic stroke is what happens when something blocks the arteries or reduces blood flow from the heart to the brain. This blockage deprives brain tissue of vital oxygen and nutrients, which causes brain cells to die within minutes.
Sometimes called a brain attack, a hemorrhagic stroke is caused by blood vessels in the brain bursting or leaking, which increases pressure on brain cells and kills or damages them. “About 85% of strokes are ischemic and about 15% are hemorrhagic,” says Dr. Lawrence Wechsler, a professor of neurology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.
What causes strokes?
An ischemic stroke is caused by blood vessels becoming narrowed or arteries being blocked by fatty deposits. Other forms of blockage include “plaque buildup in the arteries or blood clots from the heart,” says Wechsler.
The leaks and ruptures associated with a hemorrhagic stroke can be the result of any number of things that include head trauma, bulges at weak spots in blood vessel walls (known as aneurysms) or uncontrolled high blood pressure.
any of these various causes are preventable or modifiable, explains Dr. John Hanna, a vascular neurologist for the Atlantic Health System in New Jersey. This is why risk factors such as obesity, smoking, excessive drinking and limited physical activity are all recommended against.
Medical conditions such as type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, high cholesterol and high blood pressure commonly increase one’s risk of stroke and are also often within a person’s control to reduce or avoid.
“Atrial fibrillation, which is a specific type of irregular heartbeat, can be another risk factor,” adds Parker; and taking certain medications is yet another.
Two non-avoidable factors that predispose some individuals to vascular issues like stroke are getting older and genetics/a family history of heart disease, says Thachil.
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