Neurological
-Cerebrovascular accident (CVA) is a medical term for a stroke. Stroke gets incurred when blood flow to part of one’s brain is halted by the blockage or by the rapture of the blood duct. CVA if mostly pronounced in older people and anyone who possessed the risk factors highlighted later on (Arboix, 2015). The root cause of cerebrovascular accidents includes the abnormalities suffered in the cerebral vascular system like cerebral arterial blockage and atherosclerosis from elevated cholesterol. The clot blocking the duct may destroy cerebral cells. Most patients will immediately depict neurological signs once the cerebral vascular system gets blocked or bleeding in the brain occurs. Therefore, individuals ought to avoid the following risk factors that may lead to cerebrovascular accidents.
Hypertension – hypertension may cause degradation of blood vessels. High blood pressure affects the lining of the blood vessels, as the strength and flexibility of the walls get degraded.
Diabetes – is the second major cause after high blood pressure that can lead to cerebrovascular accidents. It can lead to pathologic alterations in the blood ducts at assorted points and can lead to CVA if the cerebral ducts are directly affected.
Obesity – overweight individuals have a high possibility of having diabetes, hypertension, or even both. Excess body fat may lead to inflammation, which causes blood to flow poorly and possibly blockages (blocked artery and leaking blood vessel).
High cholesterol – High cholesterol can cause inflexibility of cerebral blood vessel linings, consequently blocking the vessel. If the blockage of blood vessels happens near to the cerebral point, there would be a lack of blood. This blockage may lead to the death of brain cells, and that particular person becomes paralyzed.
Smoking and drinking habits – these behaviors may lead to the weakening of blood vessel linings. The vessel linings of smokers are more fragile compared to those of non-smokers. Also, carbon monoxide from cigarettes lowers the amount of oxygen in our blood, while the nicotine makes the heart beat faster, hence raising blood pressure. This occurrence increases the risks to CVA.
Blood concentration – when the hemoglobin quantity gets higher than the normal range, there is a greater possibility of cerebrovascular accidents.
When it comes to culture, African-Americans are twice predisposed to risk of cerebrovascular accidents than their white counterparts and possess higher mortality associated with cerebrovascular accidents. Latino Americans also have an increased risk of stroke. This issue is brought about by the unequal distribution of the public health burden of stroke of African-American groups.
Deep tendon reflexes refer to a repetitive vibratory contraction of muscles that happens to respond to stretching of muscles and tendons. Deep tendon reflexes get rated according to the following scale by convention. 0 – there is no response and always abnormal, 1+ = there is a slight but certainly present reaction; may or may not be rational, 2+ = brisk response; normal, 3+ = a very brisk response; may or may not be normal, 4+ = a tap elicits a repeating reflex (clonus); always abnormal.
A patient with diabetic peripheral neuropathy depicts numbness, sometimes pain felt on feet, legs, or hands, and loss of sensation. Peripheral neuropathy refers to nerve damage due to diabetes high blood sugar. This damage is a common complication of diabetes.
I once encountered a grandmother aged 70 years who got discovered to have diabetic neuropathy at the age of 35 when she went to visit a neurologist after having signs of pain and tingling in her lower feet and legs numbness. She earlier diagnosed with diabetes type 1 at the age of 12, where she maintained proper blood sugar levels all her life, and the diagnosis was like a surprise to her. “I always said that I had control of my diabetes and not the other way around,” says the grandmother to six children and a mother to three daughters.