Stroke

We follow best practices to try to preserve brain function and prevent serious injury or death, knowing that timely, effective treatment can make a significant difference in a better quality of life following recovery.

Specialized stroke clinics are available for community physician referrals, stroke consults and for primary and secondary stroke prevention. We also have a comprehensive multidisciplinary patent foramen ovale (PFO) program for adult patients at risk of a stroke or adults who have had a stroke due to a PFO or a paradoxical embolism via other abnormal connections.

A stroke, sometimes called a “brain attack,” is an emergency and occurs when blood flow to part of the brain is interrupted. Depending on what part of the brain is “attacked,” a stroke can affect physical movement of the body (arms and legs), speech, and memory, as well as sensation, coordination, and balance. There are two types of strokes and each requires different treatment.

• Ischemic Stroke: More than 87 percent of strokes are ischemic, caused by a blood clot – a blood vessel blockage in the brain. Many of these strokes can be treated effectively with clot-busting drugs, provided the patient arrives at the emergency department as soon as symptoms are recognized.
  Thrombectomy is a treatment for ischemic stroke. During this minimally invasive procedure, a blood clot is removed and blood flow to the brain is re-established. This emergency treatment may be of benefit up to 24 hours after stroke onset.
  • A transient ischemic attack (TIA) can be the prelude to a full-blown stroke. A TIA is like a stroke but without brain damage. It may present with sudden and temporary onset of visual, speech, language, balance, strength or sensation disturbances. Never ignore TIA symptoms, which can be temporary or fleeting. Early detection can lead to immediate diagnosis, treatment.
• Hemorrhagic Stroke: This is caused by weakened vessels that rupture and bleed into the brain. Hemorrhagic stroke requires specialized medical or surgical interventions. Our neurologists, neurosurgeons and intensivists are available 24/7 to care for these patients.

Yale New Haven Health offers rehabilitation, speech, and support services to assist stroke survivors and their families. During hospitalization, physical, occupational and/or speech therapists meet with patients and their families or caregivers to assess needs and recommend a care plan. These rehabilitation services are also available on an outpatient basis.

Through video and image-sharing telecommunications, Yale New Haven Stroke Center provides remote neurologic expertise when patients present with acute stroke symptoms at numerous partner hospitals in Connecticut and Rhode Island.

By establishing a telemedicine link using videoconferencing and image sharing technology, stroke specialists can examine patients at remote hospitals miles away to help diagnose the patient's ailment and recommend a plan of care. One form of stroke treatment is to administer tPA, a clot busting drug that can greatly reduce the disability resulting from a stroke.

Unfortunately, some hospitals lack the resources to make this determination and cannot physically transfer the patient quickly enough to enable them to receive this therapy if warranted. TeleStroke can enable subscribing hospitals to provide expert acute stroke care for patients without physically transferring the patient for diagnosis and treatment.

Telestroke programs throughout the country have demonstrated that telemedicine conferencing between outlying emergency departments and trained stroke neurologists can enhance the use of tPA at hospitals that do not have on-site neurologists 24/7.

Learn more about Telehealth Services