Treatments
Do not drive to the hospital and do not let someone else drive you, call 9-1-1 immediately so trained medical personnel can begin life-saving treatment.
In treating acute ischemic stroke (acute meaning that the stroke has occurred within the past few hours), the immediate goal is to break apart the clot, a process known as thrombolysis. The quickest way to dissolve the clot is by administering tissue plasminogen activator (tPA). As a Comprehensive Stroke Center, our record for administering tPA is 13 minutes, with a goal of 60 minutes from time of arrival.
Surgery is sometimes used to clear the congested blood vessels that cause ischemic stroke or to repair the vascular abnormalities that contribute to hemorrhagic stroke.
There is a saying: “Time is brain.” Once a stroke begins, neurons in the brain begin to rapidly deteriorate, and victims lose 10 percent of salvageable brain for every 15 minutes that they go untreated. Therefore, limiting the extent of damage requires urgent, expert evaluation and treatment. Immediate treatment can help minimize effects of stroke and improve recovery outcomes.