Stroke in young people: why now it is not a 'disease of old people' and what people feel during a stroke
'05.11.2020'
Source: Amurskaya truth
Why vascular accidents overtake young and seemingly completely healthy people, and a sharp turn of the head can be fatal, says Amurskaya truth.
A stroke in a young man is like a bolt from the blue: "So young, slender and suddenly a stroke ?!" For example, the most talented Russian chess player Vanya Bukavshin, to whom everyone predicted the future of Karpov or Kasparov, died at the age of 20 from a stroke, which everyone used to call a disease of the elderly. Why the disease is "getting younger", says an experienced neurologist, director of the vascular center of the Blagoveshchensk City Clinical Hospital Artur Sayutin.
“We have been working since 2010, when a primary vascular center was opened in the city hospital. And although primary and secondary prevention seems to be underway, the number of vascular accidents is not decreasing. And the stroke is really very young. Patients under forty-five years of age are no longer a rarity today, ”says Artur Sayutin.
What is the difference between a stroke at a young age and in the elderly
There are two types of strokes. Hemorrhagic, or cerebral hemorrhage, and ischemic, in which there is insufficient or no blood supply to the brain cells. A hemorrhagic stroke is usually caused by a ruptured blood vessel due to an increase in blood pressure. Ischemic stroke is manifested by an infarction (death) of an area of brain tissue, the cause of which is a blockage of the blood vessel feeding this area. The ratio of ischemic to hemorrhagic strokes is about one to four. The mechanism of the course in young people and the elderly is the same - the reasons are different. If in the elderly it is primarily cardiovascular diseases - high blood pressure (hypertension), rhythm disturbances, atrial fibrillation, then at a young age other factors most often lead to vascular accidents.
Stroke of young people is often associated with a violation of the coagulation properties of blood, in other words, with an increase in its coagulability, "density". Among the common causes, atherothrombosis is a progressive deterioration of the vascular wall. It has always been considered an age problem. But in recent years, evidence has emerged that atherosclerosis is also getting younger. The environment is deteriorating, there is a lot of stress. And the hobby of young people for bioadditives, energy drinks, doping also affects, and provokes the uncontrolled use of drugs, including hormonal ones. All this accelerates the development of atherosclerosis and stroke at a young age.
Harbingers from childhood
Many of the precursors of stroke come from childhood. There is a hereditary factor or a congenital pathology that the parents do not know anything about. Yes, the child was often ill in childhood, examined and under-examined. Just think, it will outgrow! And the child has a chronic blood disorder, gradually small vessels in the brain become clogged, disrupting cerebral circulation.
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If a child is often sick, has fever, this indicates a violation of immunity. And scientists have already proven that one of the most common causes of the so-called thickening of blood is problems in the human immune system associated with the production of special antibodies (they are called antibodies to phospholipids) that interfere with the blood coagulation system. It is necessary to take a blood test, and check not only hemoglobin and ESR, as usual, but also to see platelets and leukocytes. If there is something suspicious in the blood, then this cannot be ignored, in the future it is necessary to deal with the prevention of vascular disorders.
Thick blood and risk of thrombosis
Even pregnancy can provoke a cerebral hemorrhage. This is how nature laid it down - during pregnancy, blood thickens, associated with the preparation of the body for childbirth. This so-called physiological hypercoagulable syndrome occurs gradually, giving the body time to adapt to it. In parallel, large vessels of the placenta are formed and the elasticity of the tissues of the woman's body changes due to hormonal changes. All this protects her from the formation of blood clots. But there are pathological conditions that lead to thickening of the blood ahead of time. This can cause thrombosis of the placental artery, miscarriage or intrauterine fetal death, or leg vein thrombosis can develop. Sometimes a stroke occurs right during pregnancy or some time after childbirth.
Thrombosis of the brain can develop in a variety of veins and arteries, including the vessels of the brain - it is not known where the thrombus will "shoot". In this case, correct diagnosis is very important.
If we are already talking about women, then you need to know: an increase in blood clotting can be triggered by taking contraceptives, which are taken not only to prevent pregnancy, but also to treat various hormonal disorders. The hormone estrogen contained in these drugs increases blood clotting, which can provoke thrombosis and cause stroke. In women, in general, hormonal disorders are more common than in men. Be sure to check your thyroid gland. Thyroid dysfunction is another cause of stroke in young people, especially in women. Headaches, menstrual irregularities, uterine fibroids - all this cannot be ignored.
Is there a link between stroke and heart disease?
Straight. This type of stroke is called cardioembolic stroke. It accounts for about a third of all blows. It can occur in case of heart rhythm disturbances, atrial fibrillation, with damage to the endocardium, heart valves, in violation of lipid metabolism, when cholesterol is elevated. As a result, small blood clots form, which travel to the brain with the bloodstream and lead to ischemic stroke. But this all happens again with increased blood clotting.
There are many risk factors for ischemic stroke, and they are all divided into two groups - unregulated and regulated, which, if desired, can be minimized. It is in our power to quit smoking and reduce salt intake, which leads to high blood pressure. We can move more - 30-minute loads are simply vital for a person.
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If there is an indication, it is imperative to take anticoagulants - blood thinning drugs that significantly reduce the risk of stroke. Normalizing blood pressure reduces the risk of stroke by half. But it very often happens that a doctor prescribes drugs, the patient takes them for some time, and then for a number of reasons stops, - the head of the vascular center of a city hospital gave an example. - Someone is confused by the cost of drugs, someone is afraid that they will then have to be drunk all their lives. People should understand that antihypertensive drugs are not taken from time to time, but constantly!
There is a concept of basic, that is, basic therapy. And the most common mistake is when people think, "We are fighting pressure." You don't have to fight with it, the pressure needs to be corrected: taking an antihypertensive drug constantly, you thereby prevent the pressure from increasing. And if you do it on a case by case basis: if you have increased - you have taken a pill, if it has gone down - you have stopped drinking, then there are jumps: 180-130, 180-120 ... With age-related fragility of the vessels, this ends in a stroke.
If you often have a headache, it is better to do a tomography
According to neurologists, another cause of stroke in young people is the so-called dissection, that is, a longitudinal tear of the wall of the vessel that feeds the brain. In this case, a blood clot is formed - a hematoma, which causes a narrowing or complete overlap of the lumen of the vessel, which leads to impaired cerebral circulation. How does it manifest? The person had a headache, and then the pain went away. After a while, my head ached again - and again passed. This goes on for a while. Advice: if you often have a headache, it is better to have an MRI. Because dissection of the arteries of the neck and head is a common cause of arterial ischemic cerebral infarction in childhood and young age.
If there were cases of early heart attacks and strokes among relatives, you need to be doubly attentive to your health and the health of children.
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Injuries, strong straining when lifting heavy objects, sharp turns of the head and manual therapy in the cervical region can provoke the development of the dissection process. Therefore, try not to turn your head sharply, do exercises to strengthen the neck muscles smoothly. And if you decide to have a massage or contact a manualist, then it should only be a professional.
The blow can be enough even for slim and athletic
For some reason, there is a persistent belief that stroke occurs in people who are elderly and prone to overweight, obese. Neurologists state that even hardened and trained people who keep fit and constantly visit fitness clubs die from vascular accidents.
“Some take anabolic steroids, energy drinks, hormones - this can cause a sharp increase in blood pressure. And together with serious physical exertion, it can lead to cerebral hemorrhage, ”neurologists warn.
There are fitness centers where it is considered sufficient that visitors bring a note from a therapist. And who checked the heart and blood vessels? Doing the now fashionable CrossFit, pulling iron in the gym is possible only after passing a serious medical examination. It should become an ironclad rule: before active physical activity, it is imperative to check the work of the heart, brain vessels, brain matter, blood. And it is very correct that today all sports federations and sections are obliged to allow children and adults to participate in classes and competitions only after consulting a cardiologist.
First-person stroke: what a person feels
“It was my first time, my first stroke. This was unexpected. Before that there was no pain, I felt good, - Natalya began, and her fingers instantly fold into the lock. The head drops, the voice becomes deaf. - It was evening, and my mother and I went to the pool, which is on Konev. I managed to swim only one path, and then only in one direction ... ”.
She swam, turned around, pushed off, made a couple of kicks and froze - her vision blurred, the picture became absent-minded, and the girl, deciding that an eyelash had got into her eye, began to rub her face. How soon she noticed that she was doing it only with her left hand, Natalya does not remember, says NGS55... However, at that very moment, when she tried to raise her hanging right hand, and she did not even move, the girl realized that the problem was not with the eye. She had a stroke.
“The hand did not move, and the sensations were as if I didn’t have it. And suddenly I understood everything, - Natalya remembered. - I panicked, tried to scream to call for help, but I couldn't - I lost my speech. I could only say: "Aaa ... And ... Paa." These were inarticulate sounds, mooing, like in small children, ”the girl recalls.
The nurse examined the client and suggested that she go to the medical room - she did not recognize the stroke. Attempts of the girl herself to explain: “Paralysis! I have paralysis! " ended at the first syllable: "P!"
“And I lay unconscious and thought only about my three-year-old daughter - will I see her again? I remember, I was so afraid that I would never see her again, ”says Natalya.
“The pool client felt bad. Come, ”- it was with this wording that the nurse called an ambulance, without informing about the symptoms and a sharp deterioration in the girl's well-being. And here's the result. At 16:45, Natalia and her mother went into the pool. At 17:00, she suffered a stroke. The dispatcher answered the call at 17:29. The ambulance arrived only 40 minutes later.
The girl was brought to the hospital at 18:32. The doctors worked promptly - they took tests, did a tomography, performed echocardiography of the heart, Holter monitoring and a number of other measures. A lacunar stroke was detected and sent to neuroreanimation. Natalia was lucky. On the sixth day, her condition improved, stabilized, and doctors of the BSMP-1 did not find any complications in her. Nor did they find the exact cause of the stroke. And this is perhaps the most frightening of all.
Celebrities are people too
British actress Emilia Clarke recently spoke about her stroke in 2011 for the first time. Newspaper.ru... Then the girl was only 25 years old. According to her, the cerebral hemorrhage occurred immediately after the release of the first season of the series "Game of Thrones", in which Emilia played the role of Daenerys Targaryen. For many years, Clark was silent about the disease that could cost her her life.
The actress admitted that before the role of "mother of dragons" she had no serious work. A lot of responsibility, participation in nude scenes, numerous advertising campaigns and a huge amount of work frightened young Clark. To relieve stress, the girl started going to the gym following the example of her colleagues.
“On the morning of February 11, 2011, I was dressing in the locker room of a gym in London, and suddenly I had a severe headache. I was so tired I could barely put on my sneakers, ”Clarke began.
However, she went to workout and did a few exercises. When the actress got to the "bar", her brain was pierced by unbearable pain, which was impossible to ignore.
“I asked the coach for a break and almost crawled to the toilet in the locker room, where I vomited a lot. Meanwhile, the shooting, stabbing and squeezing pain intensified. At some level, I began to understand what was happening: my brain was damaged, ”shared Emilia.
At that moment, she remembered the symptoms of the stroke and tried to move her fingers and toes to make sure they were not paralyzed. Also, the girl began to repeat her lines from the series in her mind so as not to lose her memory.
A woman from the next booth reacted to the noise in the toilet, asking if everything was all right.
“Obviously I wasn't okay. The woman took me out of the toilet, holding me by the side, and then everything immediately became noisy and blurry. I remember the sound of an ambulance siren and unfamiliar voices. Someone said my pulse was weak. I was vomiting bile, "- said the actress.
Then, according to her, everything was like a fog: a bustle of worried people, a loud gurney and a long hospital corridor filled with the smell of disinfectant. The doctors did not make the diagnosis right away, so for a long time they could not give Emilia pain relievers. After a brain scan, an aneurysm was confirmed - an artery ruptured with hemorrhage into the space surrounding the brain.
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“As I learned later, about a third of patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage die immediately or several hours after the ruptured artery. Patients who survive require urgent treatment to correct the aneurysm, as there is a very high risk of a second, often fatal, bleeding, ”Clarke explained.
The actress said that she was admitted to the National Hospital of Neurology and Neurosurgery, located in central London. The first time in the clinic, Clark recalls as a bad dream: she was in a state of drug madness, constantly felt shooting pain and suffered from nightmares.
“I remember being told that I have to sign an agreement form for the operation. Brain surgery? I have lived only half of my busy life and was afraid of serious surgery. But, finally, I calmed down and signed the paper, ”the actress recalled.
Over the next three hours, surgeons operated on the brain of a 24-year-old girl, after which she was horrified to discover that her vision was impaired. Later, the actress developed memory problems: once she forgot her name and could not tell it to the nurse.
A month later, Emilia's condition improved: she left the hospital and began work on the next season of Game of Thrones. On the advice of the producers, she kept the disease a secret.
Despite the relatively stable state of health of the actress, doctors warned her that a similar disease could develop in the other half of the brain. After filming for the third season of Game of Thrones, Clarke underwent a routine brain scan that confirmed the presence of another aneurysm. The actress again went to the operation, which was much more difficult than the previous one.
“When they woke me up, I screamed in pain. I was bleeding heavily, and the doctors made it clear that my chances of survival would be negligible if I did not let them continue to work. This time they needed to access my brain the old way - through my skull. And the operation had to happen immediately, ”Clarke said.
After installing a titanium plate in the skull, the actress went through a month of painful rehabilitation. Clarke admitted that she now feels good, and the desperate struggle for life made her stronger.
Years after the last surgery, the actress decided to tell the world about her disease and created the charitable organization SameYou to help people who have survived stroke and other brain injuries.
The material is published for informational purposes only, does not constitute medical advice and does not replace medical advice. ForumDaily Woman is not responsible for any diagnosis made by the reader based on the site's materials, as well as for the consequences of self-medication, and may not share the point of view of the author or expert.
