Strokes are classified as a group of brain disorders involving a loss of functions (neurologic deficits) that occur when the blood supply to any part of the brain is interrupted. Even a brief interruption to the circulation can cause decreases in brain function. The specific neurologic deficits may vary depending on the location, extent of the damage, and cause of the disorder. A stroke affects about 4 out of 1,000 people.

Risk of stroke expected to decrease with new screening guidelines

Stroke :: Risk of stroke expected to decrease with new screening guidelines

For the first time, a set of screening guidelines for the detection of carotid stenosis, the thickening of the blood vessel that supplies blood to the brain and a leading cause of stroke, has been developed by a multidisciplinary committee of internationally recognized neurologists and surgeons.

These guidelines will help reduce the death and disability rates associated with stroke by identifying carotid stenosis in a timely manner, allowing treatment before a stroke occurs. These guidelines appear in the latest issue of Journal of Neuroimaging.

Approximately two million people living in North America and Europe are currently at risk for stroke and could dramatically benefit from a thorough and effective screening procedure. ?The guidelines will help to reduce the incidence of stroke through early detection in up to one-fifth of the high risk patients who undergo screening procedures as outlined,? says Dr. Adnan I. Qureshi, lead author of the guidelines.

Screening recommendations are provided for high risk persons in the general population; patients undergoing open heart surgery including coronary artery bypass surgery; patients with peripheral vascular diseases, abdominal aortic aneurysms, and renal artery stenosis; patients after radiotherapy for head and neck malignancies; patients following carotid endarterectomy, or carotid artery stent placement; patients with retinal ischemic syndromes; patients with syncope, dizziness, vertigo or tinnitus; and patients with family history of vascular diseases and hyperhomocysteinemia.

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