An embolic ischemic stroke is defined as which of the following?

An embolic ischemic stroke is defined as which of the following?

• A. An ischemic stroke caused by a clot formed elsewhere in the body traveling to and blocking a cerebral blood vessel.
• B. A stroke caused by bleeding into the brain.
• C. A stroke due to local thrombosis within the brain.
• D. A transient symptom lasting up to 30 minutes.

Answer: (A)

An embolic ischemic stroke occurs when a clot formed somewhere else travels through the bloodstream and lodges in a cerebral artery, abruptly blocking blood flow to brain tissue and causing ischemia. This captures why the correct description is an ischemic stroke caused by a clot formed elsewhere traveling to and blocking a cerebral vessel. Bleeding into the brain describes a hemorrhagic stroke, which is not ischemic. A stroke due to local thrombosis within the brain is a thrombotic (in-situ) stroke, where a clot forms at the site of the arterial wall in the brain itself. A transient symptom lasting up to 30 minutes points to a transient ischemic attack, which does not cause lasting brain injury and is not an embolic stroke.

An embolic ischemic stroke occurs when a clot formed somewhere else travels through the bloodstream and lodges in a cerebral artery, abruptly blocking blood flow to brain tissue and causing ischemia. This captures why the correct description is an ischemic stroke caused by a clot formed elsewhere traveling to and blocking a cerebral vessel.

Bleeding into the brain describes a hemorrhagic stroke, which is not ischemic. A stroke due to local thrombosis within the brain is a thrombotic (in-situ) stroke, where a clot forms at the site of the arterial wall in the brain itself. A transient symptom lasting up to 30 minutes points to a transient ischemic attack, which does not cause lasting brain injury and is not an embolic stroke.