How does a stroke occur?

The brain has a vital importance for the human body. It holds the main responsibility for motor, sensitivity and other functions. The brain functions normally when the blood that circulates through it is distributed evenly and continuously. Due to another disease or condition, a blood vessel in a certain area of the brain may rupture (break) and cause the blood to spread to the surrounding tissue and damage it. Depending on the affected area, how extensive the affected area, how large and important the damaged blood vessel is, the damages and deficits that other parts of the body incur will vary. A stroke can also occur when another disease or condition causes the blockage of a blood vessel in the brain, and therefore prevents blood from circulating in that area. This is called a brain infarction or cerebral ischemia, and it causes stroke symptoms, which depend on the area affected, how extensive the affected area is, etc.

Medically Reviewed by a doctor on
Medical Author: Dr. med. Diana Hysi