Risk for ‘Silent Stroke’ after 60

A recent study published in the journal Neurology has found that people over age 60 are at risk for “silent strokes,” which are small strokes that cause no symptoms, but can still damage brain tissue. Australian researchers, led by study author Dr. Perminder Sachdev, also found that those with high blood pressure were especially at risk of experiencing this type of stroke. For the study, Sachdev, a neuropsychiatry professor at the University of New South Wales in Sidney, and his team, followed 477 people from age 60 to 64 for a period of four years. They found that of the group, 7.8 percent showed evidence of strokes that caused them no noticeable symptoms, with 1.6 percent having experienced a silent stroke by the conclusion of the study. These “silent strokes,” or silent lacunar infarctions, prevent blood from flowing through an artery that supplies inner areas of the brain with blood. Study participants with high blood pressure had a 60 percent higher chance of experiencing a silent stroke when compared with participants who had normal blood pressure. Researchers also found that those with white matter hyperintensities, which are areas of increased signal intensity in the brain, were close to 5 times more likely to experience a silent stroke than participants without this condition. Other risk factors for silent stroke include heart disease, diabetes, age and smoking.

Even though people who experience a silent stroke have no symptoms, it does put them at higher risk for later strokes. They may also experience a more rapid loss of mental skills than other people. According to the American Stroke Association, common warning signs of stroke include sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body, sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding, sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes, sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination and sudden, severe headache with no known cause. If you or a loved one has been the victim of stroke malpractice in New York, call or e-mail the medical malpractice attorneys at Silberstein, Awad & Miklos, P.C. today for your free consultation. We have been serving clients with Brooklyn stroke malpractice, Bronx stroke malpractice, Queens stroke malpractice, Nassau stroke malpractice and Suffolk stroke malpractice cases for more than 30 years.

Call us toll-free 1-877-ASK4SAM and visit www.ask4sam.net