Module 6 - Preventing and Treating Ischemic Stroke

Knowledge

• List 6 recommendations that you could make to help patients reduce their risk of having a first stroke.
• Describe specific measures that can reduce stroke risk after a TIA or initial stroke when there is an identified source of cardiac emboli or carotid stenosis.

Clinical Applications and Reasoning

• Explain why determining whether a stroke is ischemic or hemorrhagic is a critical step in early therapeutic decision-making.
• Explain why only a small percentage of stroke patients are eligible for thrombolytic therapy.

Clinical Applications to Patient Education

• Define 4 points to make in describing the warning signs of stroke to a 70 year-old man with cardiac disease and medically-treated hypertension and his 65 year-old diabetic wife.
• Plan your response to a patient who states, "There's no rush for help if you think you're having a stroke--you're as good as gone anyway..."