Stroke and Cerebrovascular
at Texas Neurology

Waleed H El-Feky, MD
Lise Labiche, MD

What is stroke and cerebrovascular disease?

Definitions
• A stroke (also known as brain attack) is a condition where the blood supply to an area of the brain is suddenly stopped. This leads to the death (infarction) of brain cells and tissue within minutes or few hours from the onset of stroke.
• Cerebrovascular diseases are a group of diseases that affect the blood vessels and blood supply to the brain.

Types
• Ischemic stroke is caused by sudden blockage of an artery in the brain. The blockage of an artery can occur from a blood clot from the heart known as an embolic stroke, or from narrowing and blockage of an artery inside the brain known as thrombotic stroke.
• Hemorrhagic stroke is when a blood vessel, an aneurysm or a vascular malformation ruptures leading bleeding inside the brain

Impact
• 700,000 new strokes every year
• Third cause of death in the united states
• Leading cause of disability