Stroke Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Stroke - Research Paper Example This is without any other signs that could have perpetuated the condition other than vascular origins. The condition can be aggravated by factors such as unhealthy diet, psychosocial stress, depression, cardiac causes such as fibrillation of the arteries, high cholesterol, reduced physical activity, excessive alcohol intake and high waist-to-hip ratio. Despite knowledge of factors that aggravate stroke or trigger it, the actual cause remains unknown, although there are possible causes that lead to its occurrence. In case of the ischemic stroke, is known to be caused by the occlusion of blood vessels in the cerebral cortex, which then takes responsibility of most of the strokes that occur (Catangui & julia 2012). The other form of stroke is the hemorrhagic stroke, which results from bleeding in the cranium and causes minor strokes. Manifestations Ischemic stroke is often accompanied by reduced mental functionality and cognitive impairment. Studies have shown that stroke can bear sympt oms such as dementia and, therefore, patients suffering from dementia have an increased risk of suffering from stroke (de Moraes, 2003). Clinical studies have revealed that influences of temperature have a bearing on the occurrence of ischemic strokes. This is based on the fact that low temperatures have a profound on the properties of blood such as viscosity and the ability of blood to clot (Hong et al, 2003). Moreover, stroke affects different people based on demographic variables such as sex, age, height and weight. In some patients, symptoms of stroke involve migraines; moreover, neurologic deficits are characteristic of strokes with minimal capability to resume later productivity. The positive side of this condition is that not all patients who have suffered from stroke require constant care. In addition, lifestyle issues are known to increase the risk of suffering a strokes both first occurrence and recurrence. For example, use of tobacco increases the chance of getting stroke by a significant margin as compared to those who do not smoke. As for nutritional and dietary intake, arteriosclerosis is reduced in order bringing down the risk factor of having an ischemic stroke. This is also the case for salt intake and blood pressure, which is a known aggravator of ischemic stroke. Diagnostic tests In diagnosing and conducting tests on patients suffering from ischemic stroke, there are a number of effective tests and diagnosis. Tests conducted on these patients are used to determine the different categories and subtypes of ischemic stroke. Clinics make use of magnetic resonance imaging and computer tomography to create a basis of risk factor profiles (Adams et al, 1993). Blood tests for stroke patients involve a complete blood count (CBC) where the number of blood cells in the blood is determined (Bogousslavsky & Regli, 1987). This method is also use to determine other conditions and, therefore, other tests are run concurrently to rule them out. The most impor tant test is the coagulation test used to determine the coagulation rate of the patients and determine the risk level. Through this test, medical practitioners are able to prescribe preventive measures and even start medication for the patient. This test is used together with thrombolysis to ensure that circulation of blood to the brain is sufficient. The other clinical test that is used to investigate the blood supply to the brain is through the use of MRI and CT