NEW ORLEANS, Feb 11 (Reuters Health) -- Individuals who experience an
acute transient ischemic attack (TIA) or "mini-stroke" are at a substantial risk
for having a full-blown stroke within 3 months, researchers report.
A TIA is a sudden, temporary stroke symptom, such as dizziness, loss of
vision, difficulty speaking, or paralysis of the face, arm or leg. It signifies
arterial disease, and is a warning sign of stroke.
"TIAs are dangerous," lead study author Dr. S. Claiborne Johnston of the
University of California, San Francisco, said in a presentation here at the
annual meeting of the American Stroke Association. "This study helps support the
argument that patients who have had TIAs need urgent intervention."
To determine what prognoses are associated with TIAs, Johnston and
colleagues reviewed the records of nearly 1,800 patients who presented to
emergency departments with a TIA. The team then analyzed hospital admissions for
strokes, other TIAs, and cardiovascular events in this group of patients over a
3-month period.
Thus far, data for 36% of the patients have been analyzed. In these
subjects, the researchers observed that the risk of becoming hospitalized for
stroke within 3 months of experiencing a TIA is 10.5%. Additionally, 63% of
these admissions occurred within the first week, and 85% occurred within the
first month.
Specifically, Johnston's team found that, within 3 months, 2.5% of these
patients will die, an additional 2.5% will experience a cardiovascular event
such as congestive heart failure or a heart attack, and 13.5% will experience
another TIA.
The investigators also observed that the risk for developing stroke within
3 months of a TIA increases by 25% in patients with diabetes mellitus, those
aged 60 years and older, and those who experience signs and symptoms of weakness
or confusion for longer than 10 minutes.
"There is a lot of uncertainty about just how dangerous TIAs are,"
Johnston said in his presentation. "Just because the symptoms of (TIA) are gone,
doesn't mean the danger is, too."
"TIAs have potentially devastating implications," he said. "Unfortunately,
we're only just now beginning to catch up to it."
