email: david.cohen@nhs.net
phone: (020) 8869 2451
Dr David Cohen,
Care of Older People, 8F001
Northwick Park Hospital
Watford Road
Harrow, HA1 3UJ
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Stroke is when damage is caused to the brain by blockage of its blood supply or bleeding.
Blockage of an artery causes the part of the brain supplied by that artery to die. If the blockage can be cleared with a few hours the damage can be reversed but after any longer time the damage is permanent.
Cerebral haemorrhage (about 1 in 6 of all strokes) is caused by rupture of an artery in the brain. This causes brain damage. The bleeding itself stops within a few hours but the damage to the brain is often permanent.
Recovery from a stroke may occur as other parts of the brain learn to do the functions carried out by the damaged part. The amount of recovery depends on how much brain is damaged and whether the rest of the brain is able to make new connections.
A Transient Ishaemic Attack (TIA) is where the blockage to an artery is cleared very quickly. Often the symptoms only last a few minutes but this should be treated as an emergency because it shows that a stroke may be about to happen.