Last updated on August 29th, 2017 at 10:29 am

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What is a stroke?

Anyone can suffer a stroke, including children. It is a medical emergency and occurs when the blood supply to part of the brain is cut off.  It can lead to permanent brain injury, disability and death. Strokes cause more disabilities in the UK than any other condition and is a major cause of adult disability affecting walking, talking, swallowing, balance, co-ordination, vision, bladder and bowel control.

There are over 1.2 million stroke survivors living in the UK.  This means that mortality rates are lower than ever before, but the number of strokes occurring in people aged 20-64 has risen substantially in the last 15 years.

Types of stroke

• Ischaemic stroke. This is the most common type of stroke which occurs when a blood vessel that takes blood to the brain becomes blocked, usually by a blood clot.
• Haemorrhagic stroke. This happens when a blood vessel in the brain bursts and bleeds, which can damage the tissue and can be caused by uncontrolled hypertension (high blood pressure).
• Transient ischaemic attack (TIA). This is also known as a “mini stroke” which is usually caused by a temporary blockage. A TIA can cause stroke symptoms although it doesn’t usually cause any lasting damage.

Statistics

In January 2016 the Stroke Association published its excellent ‘State of the Nation’ document which sets out some alarming statistics:

• Stroke occurs approximately 152,000 times a year in the UK; that is one every 3 minutes 27 seconds.
• First-time incidence of stroke occurs almost 17 million times a year worldwide; one every two seconds.
• There are over 1.2 million stroke survivors in the UK.
• 3 in 10 stroke survivors will go on to have a recurrent stroke or TIA.
• 1 in 8 strokes is fatal within the first 30 days.
• 1 in 4 strokes is fatal within a year.
• Stroke is the fourth single largest cause of death in the UK and second in the world.
• By the age of 75, 1 in 5 women and 1 in 6 men will have a stroke.
• Stroke kills twice as many women as breast cancer and more men than prostate and testicular cancer combined a year.
• Stroke is one of the largest causes of disability – half of all stroke survivors have a disability.
• Over a third of stroke survivors in the UK are dependent on others. Of those, 1 in 5 is cared for by family and/or friends.
• For every cancer patient living in the UK, £241 is spent each year on medical research, compared with just £48 a year for every stroke patient.

Risk factors

Whilst it is not possible to completely eliminate the risk of stroke, with better awareness and control of risk factors, the Stroke Association says that up to 80% of all strokes could be prevented. Some of the risks of having a stroke are:

• high blood pressure
• cigarette smoking
• diabetes mellitus
• irregular heart rhythm
• high cholesterol
• lack of exercise
• unhealthy diet
• previous history of stroke
• previous history of a heart attack or angina
• history of peripheral vascular disease (poor arterial circulation to the legs)
• use of illegal drugs
• traumatic injury to the blood vessels of the neck
• disorders of blood clotting
• use of oral contraceptives

Recognising stroke symptoms

The sooner a suspected stroke patient is seen by a doctor, a diagnosis made and treatment started, the greater the likelihood of survival, less disability and recovery.  Therefore, the message is – act ‘FAST’ and save a life:

F – Face / Does the face droop on one side when the person smiles?

A – Arm / After raising both arms, does one of the arms drift downwards?

S – Speech /After repeating a simple phrase, does the person’s speech sound slurred or strange?

T – Time / If any or all of the above are observed call for 999 and ask for medical assistance.

How can we help?

Avoiding a stroke is not always possible and the treatment options available are fact specific.  However, if you consider there was a delay in diagnosing or treating your symptoms it would be wise to seek legal advice to determine whether you might have a case for clinical negligence.

If you would like to talk to a member of our specialist team then please contact us for a confidential and free discussion today.

You can find out more about making a medical negligence claim on our web pages.