Stroke continues to be the leading cause of physical disability and is also among the leading causes of death in the world. In the last two decades, significant progress has been made in the treatment of acute stroke, primarily through treatment in specialized units and the use of systemic thrombolysis (dissolving clots using drugs) and mechanical thrombectomy (mechanical removal of clots), according to the Croatian Society for Stroke Prevention.
"Despite the fact that 90% of strokes can be prevented if we act on 10 risk factors, epidemiological indicators still do not show significant changes in terms of reducing the number of patients," they explained.
The ten risk factors that we can influence are:
- increased blood pressure
- physical inactivity
- inadequate nutrition
- overweight
- smoking
- alcohol consumption
- atrial fibrillation (irregular heartbeat)
- elevated blood fats
- diabetes
- depression and stress
The most common symptoms of a stroke occur suddenly:
- Sudden numbness, weakness, or numbness in an arm, leg, or face, especially if only one side of the body is affected
- Sudden speech disturbances - difficulty understanding, speaking or loss of speech
- Sudden vision disturbances - sudden blurring or loss of vision
- Sudden disturbances in walking, unsteadiness and drifting in walking, loss of balance, dizziness
- Sudden severe headache, may be accompanied by nausea and vomiting
"Arterial hypertension (high blood pressure) is often a disease that is not detected early enough. Its true cause usually remains unknown, except in some rare cases. Blood pressure can be easily checked using a pressure device, because high pressure does not give any specific reliable symptoms. Therefore, often unrecognized, it was called the "silent killer", given the possible devastating consequences for health", explains the Croatian Society for Stroke Prevention, writes 24 hours. hr.
High blood pressure is the most important risk factor, which increases the risk of a stroke three to four times and is the underlying cause of most stroke patients. It is believed that 50% of strokes are the result of inadequately regulated arterial hypertension.
"Today, there are effective drugs that successfully treat high blood pressure. One drug is given, or a combination of several drugs that each act on a certain mechanism of the formation of high blood pressure. In addition to drugs, one should definitely take care of lifestyle, regulating body weight, reducing salt intake in food, exercise, avoiding alcoholic beverages. Try to live relaxed and calm, do not allow stress to destroy the quality of life," they emphasize.
An important role in the control of blood pressure, as well as other risk factors, is played by their monitoring, which is now also possible with the help of mobile applications. By recognizing and monitoring risk factors, it is possible to react in time and start treatment.
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