Jun 17, 2009 6:20 pm US/Mountain
Gender Differences Found In Stroke Symptoms
DENVER (CBS4) ―
A study in the journal "Stroke" finds about half the women who suffer a stroke have symptoms which may go unrecognized by patient and doctor alike.
The finding is similar to what is known about heart attacks and women -- women are more likely to suffer what have been considered unusual symptoms.
CBS4 Medical Editor Dr. Dave Hnida said diagnosing stroke early is important because there are medicines which can dissolve the blockage in the brain causing the stroke.
Classic signs of stroke include paralysis of an arm or leg, a drooping face, slurred speech and a loss of balance.
Hnida said men are the ones who are most likely to show those classic signs.
"Women will not. More than half will show signs that are easy to ignore or pass off as some other problem," Hnida said.
The symptoms women need to be aware of include pain in the face or one side of the body, being lightheaded or dizzy, confusion or feeling disoriented, and non-neurological symptoms like nausea or even something like hiccups.
These unusual symptoms tend to happen early in a stroke, especially ones of confusion or someone just "being out of it." The other symptoms show up later.
Hnida said it can be tempting to ignore the weird symptoms if they last a short period of time, but it's important to get to a doctor.
"People can suffer mini-strokes or TIAs which don't last long, but research shows many of those patients will have a full-blown stroke within 24 hours," he explained.
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