Stroke guided study

Question 1

list some of the impacts of stroke

Answer 1

150,000 per year
67,000 deaths per year
greater disability impact than any other disease
£2.8 billion cost to the NHS

Question 2

what are the features of haemorrhagic stroke

Answer 2

higher mortality rate than ischaemic infarctions

patients are usually more ill

Question 3

what are some common symptoms of haemorrhagic stroke

Answer 3

headache, altered mental status, seizures, nausea, vomiting, hypertension

Question 4

describe the appearance of a haemorrhagic stroke on a CT

Answer 4

blood is bright white, distortion of the brain, dark grey halo around the bleed which is oedema

Question 5

what is the treatment for a haemorrhagic stroke

Answer 5

supportive only

Question 6

what is the common cause of thrombotic strokes

Answer 6

rupture of an atherosclerotic plaque in the intracranial arteries

Question 7

what is the usual cause of an emboli stroke

Answer 7

usually originate from a thrombus in the heart or break off from atherosclerotic plaques in the carotid arteries, lodging in and occluding intracranial arteries.

Question 8

describe the ischaemic cascade

Answer 8

loss of glucose and oxygen delivery to neurons
cessation of the normal electrophysiological function of the cells.
The resultant neuronal and glial injury produces oedema

Question 9

describe the presentation of an anterior cerebral artery stroke

Answer 9

occlusions primarily affect frontal lobe function and can result in disinhibition and speech perseveration, producing primitive reflexes (eg, grasping, sucking reflexes),
altered mental status, impaired judgment, contralateral weakness (greater in legs than arms), contralateral cortical sensory deficits gait apraxia,
urinary incontinence.
This is the rarest type of stroke

Question 10

describe the presentation of a Middle cerebral artery occlusion

Answer 10

contralateral hemiparesis
contralateral hyperaesthesia, 
ipsilateral hemianopia
gaze preference toward the side of the lesion
Agnosia
aphasia
inattention
weakness of the arm and face is usually worse than that of the lower limb

the most common type of stroke

Question 11

what is the most common type of stroke

Answer 11

middle cerebral artery occlusion

Question 12

describe the presentation of a posterior cerebral artery stroke

Answer 12

vision and thought
contralateral homonymous hemianopia
cortical blindness (occipital lobe disorder) 
visual agnosia (parietal lobe disorder)
altered mental status
impaired memory

Question 13

what is the penumbra

Answer 13

potentially salvageable area around the core of the ischaemia
reduced blood supply