Topics: blood pressure, health, stroke
STROKE is Australia's second biggest killer and a leading cause of disability, with about 500,000 Australians having a stroke every year.
According to the Australian Stroke Foundation, a stroke happens when blood supply to the brain is interrupted.
This may occur because the artery is blocked (ischaemic stroke) or bursts (haemorrhagic stroke).
When brain cells do not get enough oxygen or nutrients, they die.
Your risk of having a stroke increases as you get older and men are also more likely to have a stroke.
Now a new treatment for stroke is set to increase the chances of recovery.
A landmark Australian-led study, by The George Institute of Global Health, found that intensive blood pressure lowering in patients with intracerebral haemorrhage (spontaneous bleeding within the brain), reduced the risk of major disability and improved chances of recovery by as much as 20%.
The study, which involved more than 2800 patients from 140 hospitals around the world was published in The New England Journal of Medicine.
Intracerebral haemorrhage affects more than 10% of those who have a stroke, kills one third of them and leaves most survivors with disability.
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New treatment for stroke boosts chances of recovery