North Shore Medical Center (NSMC) has received the American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines – Stroke (GWTG–Stroke) Silver and Bronze Performance Achievement Awards. The awards recognize NSMC’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of stroke care by ensuring that stroke patients receive treatment according to nationally accepted standards and recommendations.

SMC has developed a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to the emergency department. This includes always being equipped to provide brain imaging scans, having neurologists available to conduct patient evaluations and using clot-busting medications when appropriate.

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Stroke Facts

• Every 45 seconds someone in America has a stroke.
• In one second 32,000 brain cells die, in 59 seconds more an ischemic stroke will have killed 1.9 million brain cells.
• About 700,000 Americans will have a new or recurrent stroke this year and over 163,000 of them will die (making it the third leading cause of death in the USA).
• There are approximately 266,000 stroke survivors with permanent disabilities.
• There will be approximately 30,000 new permanent admissions to nursing homes this year.
• There are over 4 million stroke survivors today.
• Fewer than one in five Americans can identify even one stroke symptom.
• The economic impact of stroke is estimated to cost $40-$70 billion per year.
• A stroke can be devastating, that's why it's so important to minimize your risk.

What causes a stroke and what types of stroke are there?

A stroke occurs when a blood vessel in the brain bursts or gets clogged. Clots that block an artery cause ischemic (is-KEM-ik) strokes. This is the most common type of stroke and accounts for 85% of all strokes. Millions of brain cells die each minute a stroke is untreated.
Ruptured blood vessels cause hemorrhagic (hem-o-RAJ-ik) or bleeding strokes. The affected part of the brain doesn't get the blood it needs and in minutes begins to die. Each stroke has different effects. If you have a stroke you could suffer paralysis, have trouble talking and/or understanding speech, your vision could be affected, you could lose emotional control, become depressed or even die. It's important to get treatment as quickly as possible in order to minimize long term effects of a stroke. Remember...every second counts!

What are the effects of a stroke?

The brain is an extremely complex organ that controls various body functions. If a stroke occurs and blood flow can't reach the region that controls a particular body function, that part of the body won't work as it should. If the stroke occurs toward the back of the brain, for instance, it's likely that some disability involving vision will result. The effects of a stroke depend primarily on the location of the obstruction and the extent of brain tissue affected.

Right Brain

The effects of a stroke depend on several factors including the location of the obstruction and how much brain tissue is affected. However, because one side of the brain controls the opposite side of the body, a stroke affecting one side will result in neurological complications on the side of the body if affects. For example, if the stroke occurs in the brain's right side, the left side of the body (and the right side of the face) will be affected, which could produce any or all of the following:

• Paralysis on the left side of the body
• Vision problems
• Quick, inquisitive behavioral style
• Memory loss

Left Brain

If the stroke occurs in the left side of the brain, the right side of the body (and the left side of the face) will be affected, producing some or all of the following:

• Paralysis on the right side of the body
• Speech/language problems
• Slow, cautious behavioral style
• Memory loss

Can a stroke be stopped?

Many clinical trials have led to advances in preventing and treating strokes. As a result, stroke no longer automatically results in disability or death. A clot-dissolving drug commonly referred to as t-PA (tissue plasminogen activator) can reduce long term disability if it is given within three (3) hours after an ischemic stroke starts. However, t-PA is not used as often as it could be because many people don't seek medical treatment as quickly as they should. In order to receive t-PA or other stroke treatment, you must get to a hospital fast so a physician can quickly diagnose a stroke.