Stroke

Every year in Germany around 200,000 people suffer a stroke. One in 4 of those affected dies within a year. This makes stroke the third most frequent cause of death in Germany, after heart attack and cancer. And seen at a worldwide level, it is meanwhile second place

The risk of a stroke increases with increasing age. But even young people and children can suffer a stroke. The consequences of a cerebral infarction can be permanent damage that can mean a requirement for lasting care.

Persons suffering a stroke undergo a sudden loss of certain brain functions. The cause is usually an increasing level of change in the blood vessels (e.g. arteriosclerosis) in the brain. If the symptoms of loss last for longer than a day (24h), a complete stroke has been suffered. In this case permanent damage to the nerve tissue has taken place. If the symptoms of loss are only apparent for a short period, one speaks of a transitory ischaemic attack (TIA).

The sudden loss of capabilities is typical for a stroke, e.g. paralysis or paresis, uncertainty in walking or visual and speech disorders. In such cases it is important to act quickly. The patient must be taken to hospital immediately for medical treatment. The so-called "Stroke Units", set up in many internist and neurological clinics, are centres specialized in treating stroke patients. They contain various groups of medical and nursing specialists which work closely together to help ensure that the stroke patient is given optimal medical treatment. The front-line members of the medical team include neurologists and internists, especially angiologists and cardiologists.