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120 YEARS CLUB
Taking action in time is key
BY JOAQUIN ORAMAS
CEREBROVASCULAR disease is the third cause of death
in developed countries, and its occurrence increases
with age, becoming more likely in individuals over
65 years old. It is also the most common reason for
neurological disability in adults; as far as gender
is concerned, it is more common in men than in
women.
In
the United States alone, some 700,000 people
annually suffer a stroke. In that country, some
medical associations are recommending the creation
of specialized centers for that cerebral disease.
It
is worthwhile noting that those who aspire to live
longer and even reach 120 with quality of life, and
those who care for them, should be attentive to
preventative measures to avoid that illness, which
frequently does irreparable damage or may leave
unpleasant consequences.
A
cerebrovascular incident (also called a stroke)
occurs when cerebral irrigation suffers damage. It
may be from a blocked artery, which leads to what is
called ischemia, or a broken artery, which causes
hemorrhaging.
The
subsequent neurological consequences depend on the
extension and location of the injury. The individual
may be left unable to speak, read, see, write, think
or remember; in many cases, will die shortly
thereafter.
That
is why a cerebrovascular incident is defined as a
medical emergency, given that time is vital in
preventing cerebral damage.
“When a condition of this nature is taken care of in
time, first, death is avoided, and second, it
prevents damages from being irreversible; that is,
cellular death in the affected area. And that time
is limited: the first three hours.”
This
is why experts insist on the importance of
prevention for this type of condition, noting two
objectives in the behavior of the at-risk
population. On the one hand, to increase preventive
care of the arterial system to decrease causes of
deterioration. And also, knowledge of the symptoms
that indicate these incidents so that people go
immediately to where they may be treated for this
type of condition, which is of ischemic origins when
it occurs, because of the occlusion of an artery
that irrigates the brain. In the majority of cases,
it is due to the formation of clots described as
embolic and thrombotic. It may also occur with a
thrombosis, which is the formation of a clot on the
wall of a cerebral artery that grows to the point of
obstructing it, producing a thrombotic
cerebrovascular incident.
Ischemia leads to a decreased flow of oxygen and
nutrients in the cerebral cells, which finally die,
leading to a stroke.
Hemorrhagic cerebral incidents have different
causes. One of them is the rupture of a weakened
arterial wall. Arterial hypertension increases the
risk of rupture, given that in those individuals
with poorly controlled blood pressure, a little bit
of sudden pressure is enough to cause a cerebral
hemorrhage.
Another cause is aneurism, a congenital anomaly on
the arterial wall which affects 4% of the
population. The artery has a weak wall, in which the
impact of the blood causes a dilation (a very small
bubble) that progressively grows in size as years go
by, until it finally results in the rupture of the
compromised artery.
There are also aneurisms caused by pustules, which
with time can lead to the formation of a large
dilation in the wall of the artery, which, when it
breaks, bleeds.
A
hemorrhagic cerebral incident may be one of two
types: intra-cerebral or subarachnoid. If bleeding
occurs in the brain itself, it is called
intra-cerebral hemorrhaging, and if it bleeds in the
space that surrounds the brain, it is called
subarachnoid hemorrhaging.
It is very useful for all of us to know about the
consequences and preventive measures related to
strokes, a common event in all latitudes, which we
may prevent – as in other cases – by going to the
doctor in time.
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