Stroke Recovery and Treatment Guide

Stroke victims will receive IV medication treatment at the beginning of the episode and continue with oral medications during recovery and rehabilitation. Treatment of stroke must be given within three hours of onset of symptoms in order to prevent further brain damage and even death. Once a stroke has occurred, the main goal of treatment is to restore blood flow to the entire body.

Two types of blood clots that cause a stroke are embolus and thrombus. The embolus is a piece of a blood clot that broke off and travels to another part of the body. A thrombus forms inside the artery and does not travel.

Medications:

The role of medication is to restore blood flow to the cells. Some meds are used to dissolve clots, and others work to prevent cells from adhering to each other, which result in the formation of a blood clot.

Tissue Plasminogen Activator ( tPA): Is a clot busting medication given through an IV line, administered within 3 hours of symptom onset. It works by breaking down the fibrin strands, and can only be given for ischemic strokes.

Antiplatelet Meds: Prevent platelet cells from adhering to each other. Aspirin Aggrenox Plavix: Is an antiplatelet to slow clotting time. Aggrenox and Plavix replace aspirin when it is contraindicated. The inhibition of clotting can lead to severe bleeding episodes, and is a side effect of using these drugs.

Anticoagulants:

Heparin Warfarin (Coumadin)

Anticoagulants are used to prevent blood clots from forming in the heart due to atrial fibrillation. However, they do come with some risk of side effects including hemorrhage and bruising.

Vitamin K intake should be monitored while taking any anticoagulant. Vitamin K is needed for blood clotting and may counteract the mechanism of heparin and coumadin. This vitamin can be found in green vegetables. You can eat green vegetables, of course, but your doctor may need to modify the dosage of your prescribed anticoagulant.

Recovery:

Once a patient is stable they will be released from the hospital to either a rehab facility, home and outpatient therapy or home where therapy can commence. There is no set timeframe for recovery and treatment. It can last six months or longer and is a lifelong endeavor for the patient.

Family members must be ready to adjust to the changes in lifestyle that are bound to occur. In addition, the patient and care giver must have time to settle into a routine in order to make the lifestyle changes much less traumatic. In addition, changes to the living environment may also need to be made including hand rails in the bathroom and wheelchair ramps.

If the patient is bed ridden, a hospital bed may be necessary. Special beds will help to prevent the incidence of decubitus ulcers from forming on the bony prominences of the body such as the elbow, heels, and pelvis bones. To prevent ulcers, make sure the patient is turned on to the left side and right side, alternating sides, propped on pillows every 2 hours. This is very important not only to prevent bed sores, but prevention of pneumonia as well. Elevating the feet to keep heels free from any type of pressure will prevent ulcers in this area.

Skin breakdown can become very serious in a short amount of time.

Barb Hicks is a licensed registered nurse and established health writer on Clivir.com where she shares her experience and knowledge about Stroke Recovery Recipes and Common Effects of Stroke.