How is stroke diagnosed?

The signs of a stroke can be very varied: a motor deficit, a mouth that deviates, an arm that doesn't rise properly, difficulty in expressing oneself, visual problems or numbness in a limb. They are often lateralized, meaning that they only appear on one side of the body.
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How is stroke diagnosed?

In hospital, the diagnosis of stroke is completed by cerebral imaging to confirm and specify the nature of the stroke (ischaemia or haemorrhage).

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is the technique best suited to meeting the objectives of stroke imaging. In the case of ischaemia, it enables the area of artery obstruction and the extent of the “penumbra zone” to be located very quickly, so that treatment can be adapted as quickly and effectively as possible.

Ischaemia in the right hemisphere of the brain leads to paralysis of the left side of the body (left hemiplegia), visual problems and difficulty in situating oneself in space. Patients suffer from a condition known as “hemineglect”. This phenomenon means that patients are no longer aware of the left side of their body and behave as if it did not exist.

If the ischaemia occurs in the left hemisphere of the brain, patients develop right hemiplegia and language disorders.