Mumbai- Death due to brain attack, i.e.  stroke or paralysis is increasing worldwide. The first 4 hours are considered as the golden period to save a patient of brain stroke, thereafter the chances of recovery from the paralysis reduces as the time goes by the causes of brain stroke are varied, including mental stress and high blood pressure.  Brain stroke results from damage to the brain due to interruption of blood supply. This can occur due to blockage of the artery due to a clot (ischemic stroke) or due to rupture of the artery supplying the brain (hemorrhagic stroke) This is a medical emergency as it can lead to permanent disabilities like paralysis of one side of the body, difficulty in speaking, swallowing etc One can suffer from stroke even when the patient is asleep (wake up stroke)

Mrs. Anjali Devagiri (age 62) from Dahisar suffered from brain stroke early in the morning due to which she was unable to move her left arm and leg along with difficulty in speaking and swallowing. She was taken to a local hospital but her condition deteriorated and became incoherent. Thereafter she was admitted to Apex Superspeciality Hospital in Borivali. Giving more information on this is Dr. Vivek Patel, Consultant Neurosurgeon and Neuro- Interventionalist from Apex Superspeciality Hospital who treated the patient said, “After admission to Apex superspeciality Hospital, we immediately did an MRI scan of the Brain along with MRI angiography along with other vital medical tests. Scans revealed a thrombus (blood clot) in the Basilar artery, which is main artery of the posterior circulation of the brain along with areas of infarct(stroke) in regions of the brainstem and cerebellum  We immediately decided to do DSA i.e. digital subtraction angiography. In this test, an X-ray image of the blood vessels in the brain is taken to look for blood flow problems in the brain. In this procedure, a catheter (a small, thin tube) is inserted into the artery in the leg and passed up to the main arteries supplying blood to the brain and a contrast dye is injected through the catheter, and X-ray images of the blood vessels are taken. After receiving the report of this test, we immediately decided to restore cerebral blood flow using mechanical thrombectomy as the safest option. This procedure is riskier. During this procedure, an aspiration catheter or a stent retriever, or sometimes both, is advanced to the site of the obstruction. X-ray imaging is used to check if the stent moves past the clot, clears the clot, and restarts blood flow. To carry out this medical procedure it is necessary to have a team of skilled doctors and a hospital equipped with high quality medical technology like Cath lab and this procedure has to be done within hours of the brain attack or the patient will be permanently disabled. In this case, even though 18 hours had passed, we performed this procedure after the due consent of the patient’s relatives and we were successful in removing the clot and re-establishing the blocked artery. After two days, the patient started to move her arms and legs and after a total of 5 days her speech began to improve, and she was discharged home on the sixth day.”

The current changing lifestyle invites strokes. Awareness should be created in the society about paralysis. Many people do not know about paralysis. Therefore, when a stroke occurs, relatives waste time in home treatment, if the stroke is detected early, the patient needs to be immediately admitted to a hospital with modern medical facilities, according to Dr. Vivek Patel from Apex Superspeciality Hospital, Borivali. 

Apex Group of Hospitals is a chain of Hospitals managed and run by expert Medical Professionals with experience of 25 years. Currently Apex group of Hospitals manages more than 350+ beds and provides qualitative healthcare services to the people of Mumbai and surrounding areas. Apex Hospitals is located in Borivali, Kandivali & Mulund.