Stroke (brain Attack) Part Iii– Ischemic Stroke

As we mentioned in part I, besides cancer and heart diseases stroke is the third leading cause of death. Recent estimates of stroke occurrences in U. S. place the number between 700,000 to 750,000 yearly, approximately 1/4 of all stroke victims die as a direct result of the stroke or its complications. Stroke is caused by uncontrolled diet that is high in saturated and trans fats as a result of bad cholesterol building up in the blood vessels that block the circulation of blood to the body including the brain. If oxygen is not delivered to the brain cells, some cells die off and can not reproduce, then you may have stroke. Other strokes happen when a blood vessel in the brain ruptures causing the cells in your brain to be deprived of oxygen. In this article, we will discuss ischemic stroke in great details since 80% of all strokes are ischemic.
A stroke occurs when there’s a problem with the amount of blood in your brain. The cause of ischemic stroke is that there is too little blood in the brain. They occur when the arteries to your brain are narrowed or blocked, causing severely reduced blood flow (ischemia). This deprives your brain cells of oxygen and nutrients, and cells may begin to die within minutes. The most common ischemic strokes are:
1. Thrombotic stroke:
These strokes are also sometimes referred to as large-artery strokes. The process leading to thrombotic stroke is complex and occurs over time. Thrombotic stroke might be caused by the arterial walls slowly thickening and hardening as a result of arteries being injured. Such injures signal the immune system to release white blood cells to the site causing stroke. Thrombotic stroke also occurs when the inner wall of arteries were injured in result of less nitric oxide being produced, causing the hardening of the arteries. If the blood clot then blocks the already narrowed artery and shuts off oxygen to part of the brain, we have a thrombotic stroke.
2. Embolic stroke
An embolic stroke occurs when a blood clot or other particle forms in a blood vessel away from your brain. It is usually caused by a dislodged blood clot that has traveled through the blood vessels until it becomes wedged in an artery. It is also caused by irregular beating in the heart’s two upper chambers. This abnormal heart rhythm can lead to poor blood flow and the formation of a blood clot.