Stroke

St. Mark’s Hospital has been awarded the Comprehensive Stroke Center Certification from DNV GL-Healthcare. This certification means that we are ready 24/7 to care for all types of strokes. Our leading neurovascular services can treat any type of stroke or neurological injury.

Knowing the signs and symptoms of a stroke can help save your life or your loved one’s. Call 911 and seek emergency care if any of the below symptoms appear suddenly:

• Confusion, trouble speaking or trouble understanding
• Dizziness
• Numbness or weakness in the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body
• Severe headache with no known cause
• Trouble seeing in one or both eyes
• Trouble walking or loss of balance or coordination

Our hospital is equipped to quickly treat and manage strokes, as well as brain injuries and other conditions. Our exemplary care teams provide:

• Brain coiling and embolization for ruptured aneurysms
• Craniectomy for excessive brain swelling
• Continuous EEG monitoring for the diagnosis and management of stroke, seizures and other conditions
• Embolization and other surgical interventions for arteriovenous malformations (AVMs)
• External ventricular pressure monitoring and drainage
• Management of all types of cerebral hemorrhages
• Management of brain tumors
• Management of unruptured cerebral aneurysms or AVMs
• Monitoring and treatment of cerebral vasospasm
• Tenectplase for acute stroke
• Thrombectomy for acute stroke

Emergency stroke treatment

Our care coordination for stroke patients begins before you even reach one of our emergency departments. We work closely with local emergency medical services (EMS) to ensure they notify us from the field when a suspected stroke occurs. This collaboration means our team is assembled and ready as soon as the patient reaches our ambulance bay. We meet you in the bay to greet, assess and treat you quickly and effectively.

A stroke — sometimes called a brain attack —occurs when the blood flow to an area of your brain is disrupted. The cells in the affected area of the brain may not receive adequate oxygen and begin to die off. Abilities controlled by the brain, such as muscle control or memory, can be lost. Because 30,000 brain cells die each second during a stroke, you need medical intervention as quickly as possible to stop the stroke and limit any damage.

There are two main types of stroke: hemorrhagic and ischemic.

• Hemorrhagic stroke — A hemorrhagic stroke is either a brain aneurysm burst or a weakened blood vessel leak in which blood spills into or around the brain, creating increased pressure.
• Ischemic stroke — An ischemic stroke occurs when a blood vessel carrying blood to the brain is blocked by a blood clot, causing blood not to reach parts of the brain.

If you suspect someone is having a stroke, think "BE FAST." BE FAST is an acronym that stands for:

• Balance — Watch for sudden loss of balance.
• Eyes — Check for vision loss.
• Face — Is one side of the face drooping?
• Arms — Can they raise both arms? Does one drift downward?
• Speech —: Are their words slurred? Can they repeat back a simple sentence?
• Time — Time is crucial. If you notice these symptoms, call 911.