What Every Woman Should Know About Stroke
July 26, 2019
Categories: Health Conditions, Women's Health
Common Stroke Symptoms in Men and Women
A stroke occurs when a blood vessel bursts in the brain or when a blood clot or other particles block the supply of blood to part of the brain. It can cause long-term disability, permanent brain damage and even death. If you think you may be having a stroke or if you see someone experiencing any of these symptoms, don’t delay — call 9-11 immediately! It’s a medical emergency, so every second counts. Remember *B.E.F.A.S.T. It stands for:
- B = BALANCE: Has the person suddenly lost balance or coordination?
- E = EYES: Has the person suddenly experienced changes in vision?
- F = FACE: Does the person’s face look uneven, or does one side droop?
- A = ARMS: Has one arm gone weak or numb?
- S = SPEECH: Does the person’s speech sound slurred or strange?
- T = TIME: If you observe any of these signs, it’s time to call 9-1-1 or get to the nearest stroke center or hospital emergency room for rapid diagnosis and treatment.
Unique Stroke Symptoms in Women
Women may experience additional symptoms to the ones above. Many people may not recognize these symptoms as signs of a stroke, so they may delay seeking treatment. This can be life-threatening since the most effective stroke treatments are only available within the first three hours of initial stroke symptoms.
- Fainting or losing consciousness
- Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
- General weakness
- Agitation
- Hallucinations
- Nausea or vomiting
- Pain
- Seizures
- Hiccups
Unique Risk Factors in Women
The main risk factors for stroke in both men and women are: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, diabetes, age and family history. However, women face additional unique risk factors, including:
- Taking oral contraceptives, especially when combined with smoking
- Being pregnant
- Using hormone replacement therapy to manage menopausal symptoms
- Suffering from migraine headaches with aura (sensory disturbances like flashes of light and other vision changes)
Stroke Prevention for Women
To lower your risk of stroke, doctors recommend making general lifestyle changes, such as losing weight and being physically active and taking medications prescribed by your doctor. Women can take further measures to help decrease their chances, including:
- Getting screened for high blood pressure before beginning an oral contraceptive regimen
- Monitoring their blood pressure during and after pregnancy
- Quitting smoking
- Getting screened for atrial fibrillation (an irregular heartbeat that can lead to stroke and heart-related complications) if they are older than 75
Holy Cross Health’s Award-Winning Stroke Care
Our medical teams at Holy Cross Health provide top-quality, award-winning stroke expertise to all of our stroke patients. Most recently, Holy Cross Hospital and Holy Cross Germantown Hospital were awarded the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association 2019 Get with the Guidelines® – Stroke Gold Plus Achievement Award, along with the association's Target: StrokeSM Honor Roll Elite Plus Award. Both hospitals also received Primary Stroke Center designation from the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Service Systems (MIEMSS) and Holy Cross Hospital is recognized as an Advanced Primary Stroke Center by the Joint Commission.
Learn More About Stroke
*Be Fast was developed by Intermountain Healthcare, as an adaptation of the FAST model implemented by the American Stroke Association. Reproduced with permission from Intermountain Healthcare. Copyright 2011, Intermountain Health Care.
Holy Cross Health presents the information in this blog as a resource for our community. It is not intended to replace professional medical advice or to endorse any particular entity or service. Personal health problems should be brought to the attention of the appropriate health professionals.