Stroke: brain attack, time to react.

ABSTRACT

New developments in neuroscience challenge nurses to care skillfully for patients with cerebrovascular diseases. Because stroke is the leading cause of brain damage in adults, professionals are urged to approach stroke with the same urgency as other medical emergencies. Understanding the physiologic early sequelae of brain damage is essential to appreciation of the newer therapeutic treatments under study. Cardiac and hemodynamic complications of cerebrovascular disease emphasize the important role of nurses in the assessment and protection of stroke patients. Nursing implications include public education about stroke symptoms and the urgent evaluation and management of stroke.