![]() ![]() This will include a quick physical exam to look for any neurologic signs of stroke. When you arrive at the ER, you will soon be evaluated by an emergency or neurology provider. And if it was a TIA, to prevent a more serious stroke from happening. Even if your symptoms resolve quickly, or before the ambulance gets there, it is still best to be evaluated to figure out what happened. There is no way to tell when the symptoms first start if it is a mild stroke and will resolve (like a TIA), or a more severe stroke. Whenever you or a loved one develops stroke symptoms like the ones listed above, you should call 911 to get to the nearest ER as soon as possible. What happens when you go to the ER for TIA symptoms This is not a ‘blockage’ in an artery per se, but results in a sudden lack of blood flow just the same. A spasm in the artery, similar to the way a muscle gets a temporary crampĪ TIA can also happen when there is a sudden drop in blood pressure, which affects the body’s ability to get blood up into the brain.Plaque (cholesterol) build-up within the arteries in the brain.A blood clot can form within the blood vessels in the brain.A blood clot can travel from another part of the body into the brain.These blockages can happen for several different reasons: ![]() In other words, there is a temporary blockage in one of the arteries (blood vessels) that supplies blood to the brain. Difficulty walking or coordinating movementsĪ TIA occurs when there is a sudden loss of blood flow to one part of the brain. ![]() Difficulty speaking, which can look like difficulty finding or getting words out, difficulty articulating words or slurred speech, or even stringing words together that don’t make sense.Sudden confusion, disorientation, or amnesia-like memory loss.Numbness in one half of the face, hand, arm, or leg.Weakness in the hand, arm, or leg (especially if it is only present on one half of the body).Facial drooping, which often becomes more obvious when someone tries to smile, talk, eat or drink.The main difference is that TIA symptoms tend to resolve within minutes to hours. This makes sense now that you understand TIAs and strokes are more alike – and in fact the same disease – rather than separate conditions. TIA symptoms are identical to stroke symptoms. So let’s take some time to review the symptoms and causes of TIA, and what you can expect if it happens to you or a loved one. And so instead of thinking of a TIA as a mini-stroke, it is more accurate to think of it as a mild stroke – and one that is on the same spectrum as a severe stroke. Even when someone’s stroke symptoms resolve in minutes, MRIs can still pick up areas of damaged brain tissue (aka dead neurons) that result from the brief event. With advanced MRI technology, experts are now realizing the ‘no permanent brain damage’ may not be so true either. In other words, they defined a TIA by its effect on the brain (or lack thereof), rather than how long the symptoms lasted.īut it seems our understanding of the TIA needs to be redefined yet again. Instead, they defined a TIA as a stroke-like event that did not result in any permanent brain damage. But since the time of its original conception, experts have dropped the ‘24 hour’ part of the definition. When medical experts first coined the term TIA several decades ago, they defined it as stroke symptoms that resolve within 24 hours. So a TIA is not as harmless as some people make it out to be. And about 1 in 3 people who have a TIA will have a more severe stroke within 1 year. The same causes and risk factors that lead to a TIA also lead to larger strokes that can leave people with permanent disability. But labeling this as a ‘mini’ event does not do it justice, and perhaps minimizes the seriousness of the condition. You may have heard people refer to this as a ‘mini-stroke’ because it results in stroke-like symptoms that resolve themselves, in a matter of minutes to hours. ![]() A transient ischemic attack (TIA) is the medical term for a temporary lack of blood flow to the brain. ![]()
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