Health and Wealth

According to a 2005 study published in the journal Neurology, many patients will have symptoms before suffering from a full-blown ischemic stroke. “They are frequently preceded by a transient ischemic attack (TIA), also known as a ‘warning stroke’ or’mini-stroke,’ which has symptoms similar to a stroke but lasts less than five minutes and does not injure the brain,” the researchers explain.

How frequently do these TIA strokes occur before an ischemic stroke? Depending on who you ask. In that study, 549 out of 2,416 stroke victims had TIA stroke symptoms before having an ischemic stroke—a rate of about one in every five. According to other estimates, up to 43 percent of ischemic strokes, or nearly half of all strokes, are preceded by a warning stroke.

The Neurology study found that warning signs of an ischemic stroke can appear up to seven days before the event. In that study, 17 percent of the 2,416 subjects had a stroke on the day of the stroke, 9 percent had a stroke the day before, and 43 percent had a stroke in the week preceding the ischemic stroke.

The symptoms of a TIA are strikingly similar to those of an ischemic stroke, but they are only temporary. “The effects last a few minutes to a few hours and fully resolve within 24 hours,” according to one National Health Service report (NHS)

Numbness or weakness of the face, arm, or leg “especially on one side of the body,” new confusion, difficulty speaking, vision impairment in one or both eyes, dizziness or loss of balance, difficulty walking, and headaches are some of the symptoms. According to the Neurology study, all stroke symptoms occur suddenly and without apparent cause.