The brain requires a constant supply of nutrients and oxygen-rich blood to survive. A breakdown in supply of blood to a part of the brain causes damage or death to these brain cells which is known as stroke. The part of the body that is controlled by the section of the brain that is affected stops working.
The two most common types of stroke are:
- Ischaemic stroke: refers to a stroke that occurs when the artery that supplies blood to the brain becomes blocked and account for 70-80 percent of all strokes. Similarly to coronary heart disease the blockage can be caused by atherosclerosis (cerebral thrombosis) in the cerebral artery or by a clot that is dislodged in a distant blood vessel (usually in the heart) which lodges in the cerebral artery (cerebral embolism).
- Haemorrhagic stroke: refers to a stroke that occurs when a blood vessel ruptures and blood surrounds the brain tissue, damaging this brain tissue and starving some of your brain cells of blood.
The following video gives a deeper explanation of the different types of stroke. For more informational videos please visit out YouTube Channel.
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