Stroke is the third leading cause of death and disability in this country behind heart disease and cancer. By 2020, it’s estimated that a million Americans a year will suffer a stroke. Fortunately, doctors are fine-tuning new techniques for ending strokes and preserving brain function.
Until recently, doctors treated stroke by giving aspirin or more expensive drugs that dissolve blood clots, but those only work about a third of the time. Now, more and more physicians are prescribing emergency surgery. At the University of Virginia, neurosurgeon Kenneth Liu, begins an explanation by comparing his job to that of a plumber.
“The blood vessels are essentially the plumbing system of your body, and just like pipes in your house that can break or leak, or if you have a 3-year-old and they flush a bunch of crayons down the toilet, you can get a blocked toilet.”
As a result, blood flow to the brain is reduced, and that can lead to permanent damage. Using imaging technologies like CAT scan, Liu says doctors can locate the blockage, then feed tiny devices through the femoral artery to grab or suck out the clot.
“For certain stroke patients this is actually safer and more effective than a clot-busting drug.”
The key is to get medical attention as soon as symptoms occur and to find a major medical center familiar with this relatively new approach.
“You know a lot of people say, ‘My speech sounds funny or I can’t feel my hand, but maybe if I wait it out it will go away.’ “
The most common symptoms of a stroke are slurred speech, weakness, numbness or paralysis on one side of the body or face, but there are others.
“Sometimes it’s double vision. Sometimes it’s, ‘I can’t move any of my arms or legs.’ Sometimes it’s just dizziness.”
Liu says surgery may be more expensive than clot-busting drugs in the short run, but it’s far more likely to succeed, so in the long run patients will be able to care for themselves and return to work.
