Stroke check up is a health screening that should be done for stroke prevention. It is important for early diagnosis.
In order to prevent stroke, both physical activities, nutrition and health checks should be done on time and regularly.
What should be done to prevent stroke?
Stroke has certain risk factors. For example, the most common risk factors for cerebrovascular occlusion are smoking, hypertension, diabetes, cardiac arrhythmia called atrial fibrillation, high blood lipids, high alcohol intake, depression and overweight. Therefore, individualized precautions and prevention methods should be emphasized. Each of these factors has a certain risk of cerebrovascular occlusion. For example, if you smoke, you are 2.5 times more likely to have a stroke than non-smokers, and if you have diabetes, you are 1.6 times more likely to have a stroke. Therefore, prevention is about risk factors. It is necessary to analyze and correct the risks according to the individual. One of the most important risk factors for cerebral hemorrhages is uncontrolled hypertension.
Physical activity and exercise reduce the risk of stroke through direct and indirect effects. Smoking should be strictly avoided. This includes hookah. All forms of alcohol increase the risk of stroke. However, a glass of red wine can be used if it is absolutely necessary and social reasons require its use. Diabetics should control their sugar levels as low as possible. They should consider treating their diabetes as an investment in their long-term vascular health. Seafood reduces the risk of stroke, especially small fish containing omega-3. Nuts, peanuts and nuts are also good for the arteries with their essential fats and minerals. If a person is obese, he/she should definitely strive to reduce his/her weight to the normal range. Cholesterol is a risk factor, but it is a risk factor like smoking. If there are very high values and first-degree relatives have early strokes or heart attacks, they should not avoid using medication if the doctor recommends it. In other words, it increases your risk of stroke at the same rate as smoking. Therefore, forgetting other risk factors and saying "I have cholesterol" does not make sense. All risks should be reduced appropriately.
After all, any food that is good for the heart is also good for the brain. One is only as young as one's blood vessels!
What is a stroke check-up?
A check-up is an early screening and investigation of diseases or their risk factors that may cause disability or death in a person of a certain age and gender, in order to prevent death or disability or to diagnose and cure the disease early. From this point of view, stroke occurs more frequently after the age of 50-60. Of course, in the presence of risk factors, it occurs at an earlier age and its frequency increases with increasing age.
Stroke or paralysis is the loss of function in the relevant brain region as a result of blockage or rupture of one of the vessels supplying the brain. From this point of view, it can manifest itself as a blood vessel blockage or bleeding in the brain. Stroke is frequently (85%) manifested by vascular occlusion, while cerebral hemorrhages occur less frequently (15%). According to the World Health Organization, 15 million people in the world have a stroke annually. This means 1 stroke every 40 seconds or 2200 strokes per day. Of those who have a stroke, 5 million become disabled and 5 million die. It is one of the most common causes of death and disability. In our country, 130 thousand people have a stroke every year. In the next 10 years, almost one person in every family will have had a stroke.
Why should we have a stroke check up?
Stroke has certain risk factors. For example, the most common risk factors for cerebrovascular occlusion are smoking, hypertension, diabetes, heart rhythm disorder called atrial fibrillation, high blood lipids, high alcohol intake, depression, and high weight. Therefore, it is necessary to identify the risk factors. Each of these factors has a certain degree of risk for cerebrovascular occlusion.
Except for genetic risks and age, all of these risk factors can be corrected and the risk of stroke can be reduced. For example, you are 2.5 times more likely to have a stroke if you smoke and 1.6 times more likely to have a stroke if you have diabetes. If you have high blood lipids, your risk of having a stroke increases 2 times. But if you have diabetes and smoke, your risk of having a stroke is not as high as the sum of 2.5+1.6, but even higher. Therefore, prevention and check-ups are about identifying risk factors in advance. It is necessary to analyze the risks specific to the individual and correct the risks that are caught. One of the most important risk factors for brain hemorrhages is uncontrolled hypertension. Many people underestimate their blood pressure or even do not measure it at all.
If you have any of the following symptoms, you should definitely consult a neurologist and have this Stroke check up done. Many stroke patients may have the following symptoms without a major stroke. These symptoms are usually ignored and passed off as nothing. However, when a physician is consulted, the treatment can prevent a major stroke.
Symptoms
- Sudden loss of vision,
- Sudden inability to speak,
- Short-term weakness or numbness in the body,
- Short-term loss of balance or dizziness,
- Short-term forgetfulness, not recognizing the surroundings,
- Sudden loss of consciousness,
- Beginner's headache,
Which diseases is a stroke check-up important for the diagnosis of?
Stroke check-ups can detect diabetes, goiter disorder, blood and liver diseases, high blood lipids, heart rhythm and valve structural problems, and stenosis in the carotid artery. In other words, in a sense, it reveals not how old a person is biologically, but how healthy his/her vascular age is. Because the real age is vascular age. It partially differs according to age groups. Since stroke risk factors under the age of 45 and stroke risk factors over the age of 50 differ, there may be slight differences in screening.
Tests and examinations performed in stroke check up:
- Neurology examination,
- Blood count
- Fasting blood sugar,
- HbA1c,
- TSH,
- Free T4,
- Free T3,
- B12,
- Folate,
- Sedimentation
- Urea, creatinine, electrolytes,
- Cholesterol and blood fats,
- Electrocardiography,
- Blood pressure monitoring,
Do check up packages differ according to age groups?
When stroke is suspected in young patients, more detailed tests are ordered in addition to the standard tests listed above. The purpose of this is to identify some special conditions that may cause stroke in young people.