Aneurysm -
An abnormal
widening or ballooning of a section of a blood vessel.
Aneurysms can rupture, leading to stroke.
Basilar
Artery - The artery that supplies blood to the
cerebellum, the brainstem, and the back of the brain.
Brainstem - The brain structure that is the major
communication route among the brain, spinal cord, and
peripheral nerves; controls heart rate, breathing, and other
vital functions.
Cerebral
Infarction - The death of part of the brain from a lack
of oxygen-carrying blood.
Dysarthria
- a language disorder characterized by difficulty with
speaking or forming words.
Dysphagia - trouble eating and swallowing.
Embolism
- A blockage of blood flow through a vessel in the brain by
a blood clot that formed elsewhere in the body and traveled
to the brain.
Emotional Lability -
the term used when
someone is more emotional and/or has difficulty controlling
their emotions. It can happen with many neurological
conditions and often happens after a stroke. Some people
describe feeling as though all their emotions are ^much
nearer the surface ̄ or more exaggerated after their stroke.
For example some people may become upset more easily, or cry
at things they would not have cried at before their stroke.
Their emotional response is in line with their feelings, but
is much stronger than before the stroke. For other people
the symptoms can be more exaggerated, and some people find
that they cry for little or no reason. Less commonly, people
laugh rather than cry, but again the emotion is out of place
and does not match how they are feeling at the time.
Hemiparesis
- weakness on one side of the body.
Hemiplegia
- Paralysis of one side of the body.
Hemorrhage
-
Bleeding in the brain
(intracerebral hemmorage) caused
by the rupture of an intracranial (within the head) blood
vessel.
Infarct -
An area of tissue death due to a local lack of oxygen.
Ischemic -
An ischemic stroke is death of an
area of brain tissue (cerebral infarction) resulting from an
inadequate supply of blood and oxygen to the brain due to
blockage of an artery.
Paresis
(paretic) - Incomplete paralysis or weakness of the limbs.
Plegia - Lack of
voluntary movement.
Pons
-
A specific section of the brain formed by the rounded
prominence on the front surface of the brainstem.
Subarachnoid hemorrhage - A cause of some strokes in
which arteries on the surface of the brain begin bleeding.
Tissue plasminogen activator
(abbreviated tPA) - is a
protein involved in the breakdown of blood clots.
Because it works on the
clotting system, tPA is used in clinical medicine to treat
only embolic or thrombotic stroke.
Thrombosis
- A blockage of blood flow through a vessel in the brain by
a blood clot that formed in the brain itself.
Vertebral
Artery - One of two blood vessels that run up the back
of the neck and join at the base of the skull to form the
basilar artery.