What is cerebrovascular disease?
Cerebrovascular disease, or stroke, refers to brain disorders caused when the blood supply to the brain is disrupted in some way. The commonest form of stroke is caused by a blockage of a blood vessel in the brain. This leads to a portion of the brain dying. A blockage may be short lived and produce symptoms lasting less than 24 hours. This is called a transient ischaemic attack (TIA) and is dealt with in another leaflet. About one out of every five strokes is due to bleeding from a blood vessel. These strokes are often more severe. In half of these cases, bleeding occurs within the brain tissue (cerebral haemorrhage). In the other half, the bleeding starts within the coverings of the brain (subarachnoid haemorrhage). Stroke almost always begins suddenly. Often it produces numbness, or a weakness of the face, arm and leg on one side of the body (called hemiparesis or hemiplegia).
Cerebrovascular disease (CVD) is a family of medical conditions which concern the supply of blood to the brain. The presence of an uninterrupted blood supply is critical for brain function, so cerebrovascular disease is a cause for major concern when it manifests. Conditions which interfere with blood supply to the brain can be identified and addressed in a number of ways. Elderly people, smokers, diabetics, and people with high blood pressure are all at increased risk of developing cerebrovascular disease. For people who know their Latin roots, this medical term can be recognized by its parts: “cerebro” refers to the brain, while “vascular” refers to veins and blood vessels. CVD includes conditions which effect the supply of blood to the brain, and the blood supply within the brain. Left untreated, a cerebrovascular condition can lead to a stroke or aneurysm, which could cause brain damage or even death, depending on the location and the severity of the event.
