Stroke

A stroke is a sudden, focal loss of brain function due to an interruption in the blood supply to all or part of the brain . Loss of brain function occurs when neurons loose their oxygen supply. This is often due to a disturbance in cerebral perfusion. There are many different causes for the interruption of blood supply, and different parts of the brain can be affected. Because of this, strokes can have many different clinical presentations. Stroke is a medical emergency and can cause permanent neurologic damage or even death if not promptly diagnosed and treated. It is the third leading cause of death and the leading cause of adult disability in the United States and industrialized European nations. On average, a stroke occurs every 45 seconds and someone dies from a stroke every 3 minutes.Template:Fact

Risk factors include advanced age,hypertension (high blood pressure), diabetes mellitus, high cholesterol, cigarette smoking, atrial fibrillation, migraine with aura, and thrombophilia. Cigarette smoking is the most important modifiable risk factor of stroke.

The term "brain attack" is starting to come into use in the United States for stroke, just as the term "heart attack" is used for myocardial infarction, where a cutoff of blood causes necrosis to the tissue of the heart. Many hospitals have multidisciplinary "stroke teams" specifically for swift treatment of stroke.