The Importance of Stroke Screening

  Cerebrovascular pathology tends to be younger Cerebrovascular disease ranks as the third leading cause of human death, with more than 2 million people dying from stroke each year. Regardless of the different regions or races in the world, cerebrovascular accidents are the leading cause of death and disability. Each year, 1.2-1.5 million new complete strokes occur in China, with 800,000-1 million deaths, and about 75% of survivors are disabled, with a recurrence rate of 41% within 5 years. In the United States, 500,000 people develop the disease each year, 150,000 of whom die, and more than 2 million of the survivors require medical care. Cerebrovascular diseases seriously threaten human life and health, and the sequelae such as hemiplegia after stroke not only cause great physical and mental pain to patients, but also bring huge mental and economic burdens to society and families. It is reported that cerebrovascular diseases are generally more prevalent among middle-aged and elderly people over 50 years old, so they are called geriatric diseases. However, in recent years, there is an increasing trend of cerebrovascular disease among young adults under 50 years old, and it is even found among young people in their 30s, especially among young white-collar employees in cities. This may be related to the westernized lifestyle, sitting more and moving less, excessive intake of high-fat and high-calorie foods, as well as high work pressure and excessive stress.  Data show that among cerebrovascular accidents, ischemic stroke accounts for 75-90%. The main cause of ischemic stroke is due to narrowing and occlusion of the carotid artery, resulting in ischemia and even necrosis of brain tissue. Since the human brain is very metabolically active, it needs a large amount of blood supply. It is measured that the human brain, which accounts for 2% of the body weight, requires 15%-20% of the blood supply to the whole body. The main channels of blood supply to the brain are the carotid artery system and the vertebral artery system, of which the carotid arteries on both sides supply blood to the brain tissue, accounting for more than 80% of the blood required by the human brain. These arteries are divided into numerous branches within the skull and penetrate into the brain to supply various important structures of brain tissue. Once these vessels are narrowed, occluded or blocked by emboli from other vessels, and there is not enough blood supply from collateral vessels, it can cause ischemia and even necrosis in the brain tissue, resulting in severe neurological dysfunction, such as coma, limb paralysis, speech impairment, sensory impairment, hemianopia, mental retardation, etc. Infarction in certain areas such as brain stem can even cause death.  Ischemic stroke is generally divided into transient ischemic attack, reversible ischemic neurological dysfunction, and cerebral infarction. Transient ischemia refers to episodes of neurological dysfunction, such as transient numbness, weakness, and dark haze, which can be recovered within 24 hours. Patients with repeated episodes of transient cerebral ischemia will eventually develop irreversible cerebral infarction. According to statistics, about 1/3 of patients who have transient cerebral ischemia for the first time will develop cerebral infarction within 5 years if they are not given active treatment. The risk of irreversible cerebral infarction in patients with ischemic neurological dysfunction is much greater than that in patients with transient cerebral ischemia; cerebral infarction, on the other hand, is a serious neurological disease in which necrosis occurs in brain tissue due to ischemia, resulting in irreversible permanent neurological dysfunction, such as hemiplegia, hemianesthesia, aphasia, etc. So far, no method has been found to regenerate brain tissue, and once a cerebral infarction occurs, it is difficult to recover the necrotic brain tissue.