In 2019, stroke caused the deaths of
6.6 million people around the world. The condition also rendered an additional 143 million individuals disabled. These are shocking statistics, but sadly the situation hasn’t changed much in 2024.
The good news, however, is that medical research has advanced continuously, and the focus in healthcare is moving more toward prevention. Read this guide to learn and discover the different types of strokes.
Stroke strikes in various forms, each with its own cause and impact on the brain. Here's a breakdown of the three main types to equip you with essential knowledge:
An ischemic stroke is like a main highway being completely cut off — it is the artery that provides your brain with oxygenated blood. In this context, a blood clot is the roadblock that starves brain cells of the oxygen they need to do their work.
This deprivation of oxygen causes the cells in that part of your brain to slowly begin dying and may result to brain injury. Symptoms of an ischemic stroke may vary, depending on the location of blood supply affected by a blockage.
But common signs include sudden weakness or numbness on one side of your body (determined ideally through examination if symptoms are present on left/right upper and lower limbs), slurred speech — even difficulty finding words to communicate overall, drooping face or vision problems.
Hemorrhagic strokes happen when a weakened blood vessel in the brain bursts or leaks (unlike ischemic strokes). Remember the "burst pipe flooding a room" analogy? – only this time without the water, but blood. The leaked blood exerts pressure on the surrounding brain tissue, which ends up damaging it leading to an effect on normal brain functioning.. There are two types:
Transient Ischemic Attacks (TIA) are not exactly strokes. However, they warn of an impending stroke. When they occur, it's usually no more than five minutes, but they feel like full-blown strokes for that duration. Because of that, many people call it a “mini-stroke”.
Getting diagnosed as soon as you identify a TIA is crucial for taking meaningful action against it.
