SLHS 580: 11/18 “Symptoms of Stroke”

What are the symptoms of stroke?

• Numbness and weakness on one side of the body

• Confusion

• Trouble speaking and/or understanding

• Sudden vision problems

• Dizziness or loss of balance

• Sever/Unexplained headache

How much percent of stroke survivors make a full recovery? Can symptoms remain life-long?

30%

Yes

Signs of a Stroke: “BE FAST“

B alance

E yes

F ace

A rms

S peech difficulty

T ime

What is the ideal door-to-needle time?

Less than or equal to 60 minutes to mark the start of IV

Stroke Recovery Timeline: What is the most active (important) phase of recovery?

1-3 Months

The damage from stroke depends on the location: Left Hemisphere vs. Right Hemisphere

Left Hemisphere: Deficits Language —> Aphasia

Right Hemisphere: Deficits in Pragmatics, Attention, Awareness

The Rotterdam study found that left or right hemisphere strokes were more commonly reported?

The left hemisphere: because it is more clinically recognized and treatable, and noticable.

What is Aphasia? Which damaged hemisphere is responsible?

An acquired and chronic disorder characterized as a loss in ability to speak or understand language (subsequent to brain damage in left hemisphere).

—> Language but not intellect is affected; deficit in retrieval

Relationship between Stroke and Aphasia

38% had Aphasia when admitted to hospital for a stroke, and 18% had Aphasia at discharge.

—> This suggests some symptoms of aphasia might resolve itself in the acute phase of a stroke.

Assessment of Functional Communication in Aphasia vs. Dementia

Aphasia: score poorly on tests of language but functional communication is effective

Dementia: functional communication is gradually lost

Atherosclerosis

A risk factor for stroke, where fatty deposits (plaques) form on walls of blood vessels

• Can be asymptomatic for a long time

• —> Clogges vessels can’t carry as much blood and this results in delivery or less blood/nutrients to the brain

• Additionally puts pressure on the heart because it words to increase the blood pressure

Atherosclerotic build-up can lead to…

Thrombosis

Why is high blood pressure (hypertension) a risk factor for storke?

The heart works harder/pump blood faster (increasing risk of heart attack because it is being over-worked). More pressure = walls thinning —> to hemmorage

• Caused by related to stress, hormones, diet

A stroke in addition to Alzheimer’s pathology increased the likelihood of…

Dementia symptoms

Which stroke type is more related to Aphasia?

Ischemic Stroke

In the Engelter study, was the type and severity of aphasia related to age or sex?

No

How is age an important factor in likelihood of stroke recovery? Is age related to lesion size?

The older the individual was when they had the stroke, the less likelihood of recovery declines.

Age was not related to lesion size.

Which type.of stroke has the high likelihood of causing aphasia?

A. TIA

B. Hemorrhagic Stroke

C. Ischemic Stroke

C. Ischemic Stroke