Transient Ischemic Attack

A transient ischemic attack (TIA) is a stroke that comes and goes quickly. It happens when a blood clot blocks a blood vessel in your brain. This causes the blood supply to the brain to stop briefly. Symptoms of a TIA are like other stroke symptoms, but do not last as long. They happen suddenly, and include

Numbness or weakness, especially on one side of the body
Confusion or trouble speaking or understanding speech
Trouble seeing in one or both eyes
Loss of balance or coordination

Most symptoms of a TIA disappear within an hour, although they may last for up to 24 hours. Because you cannot tell if these symptoms are from a TIA or a stroke, you should get to the hospital quickly.

TIAs are often a warning sign for future strokes. Taking medicine, such as blood thinners, may reduce your risk of a stroke. Your doctor might also recommend surgery.

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Transient Ischemic Attack on Wikipedia

'''Transient ischemic attacks''' ('''TIA''') are caused by temporary disturbance of blood supply to a restricted area of brain and cause recurrent and brief (less than 24 hours) neurologic dysfunctions. If there are neurological symptoms persisting for more than 24 hours, it is classified as a cerebrovascular accident (stroke). Symptoms vary widely from person to person depending on the area of the brain involved. The most frequent symptoms include temporary loss of vision (typically ''amaurosis''), difficulty speaking (dysphasia), weakness on one side of the body hemiparesis, numbness usually on one side of the body and loss of consciousness. Patients diagnosed with a TIA are sometimes said to have had a warning for an approaching cerebrovascular accident. If the time period of blood supply impairment lasts more than a few minutes, the nerve cells of that area of the brain die permanently and cause permanent neurologic deficit. One third of the people with TIA later have recurrent TIAs and one third have a stroke due to permanent nerve cell loss.

Causes

The most common cause of a TIA is an embolus (a small blood clot) that occludes an artery in the brain. This most frequently arises from an atherosclerotic plaque in one of the carotid artery or from a thrombus in the heart due to atrial fibrillation. Other reasons include excessive narrowing of large vessels due to an atherosclerotic plaque and increased blood viscosity due to some blood diseases. TIA is related with other medical conditions like hypertension, heart disease (especially atrial fibrillation), migraine, cigarette smoking, hypercholesterolemia and diabetes mellitus.

Treatment

The mainstay of treatment following acute recovery from a TIA should be to diagnose and treat the underlying cause. EKG (EKG) may show atrial fibrillation. Echocardiogram is useful in detecting ... [ Read More ]

External Resources

Stroke-TIA.org - An educational resource focusing on the prevention and treatment of stroke and transient ischemic attacks. Features articles and webcasts of interviews with medical professionals.

Transient Ischemic Attack - Information sheet on TIAs (which are also known as "mini strokes"). Published by National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

Related Pages on HealthTales.com: