MRI clear was it a stroke?

heff
heffon Thursday, April 30 2015
2 Comments

1 year ago l was told l had had a TIA. 6 months later a physician told me it was a stroke because l still had residual effects.  However recently had an MRI which was clear and told no stroke just 'an event '. Still have symptoms,  very confused

2 Responses
Hi Heff,I'm not a medical expert but here's a working theory for you. You'll need to ask your neurologist if this is actually possible. The MRI will show scar tissue and damaged blood vessels. If whatever happened to you didn't create any gross physical markers the MRI would be clear. It just means that it's physically healed, not that it didn't happen. (My pre stroke neurological events do not show up on an MRI) If it's healed but some of the connections have been scrambled( that level of damage is too fine to be picked up by a standard MRI) you would still have trouble with some activities. You should still be able to correct the issue by laying down new pathways.After a certain point you have to work on "what is" not on "what happened". Unless there's a reason why "what happened" has current relevance.I'll never know why my artery lining collapsed, so I've let that go and moved on to how can I recover best.-Heather
Hi Heff,Your situation does occasionally occur and can be confusing. I would support what Heather has suggested. It sounds as though you have had a stroke as your symptoms have lasted longer than 24 hours. However, there is no evidence of this showing on your recent MRI. If you want a further explanation why or how this occurs ask your neurologist at your next appointment. You can look at some more definitions here: http://strokefoundation.com.au/what-is-a-stroke/types-of-stroke/As Heather mentioned, I would focus on what your current challenges are and work towards rehabilitation to lessen the impact of those difficulties. Either way regardless of whether it is a stroke or a TIA, you are at risk of a (further) stroke and need appropriate preventative measures - a combination of medicatio as prescribed by your Dr, lifestyle strategies such as exercising daily, eating a healthy nutrient dense diet, limiting alcohol, not smoking, stress management, regularly monitoring blood pressure and cholesterol etc. http://strokefoundation.com.au/site/media/UnderstandandPreventStroke_web.pdfIf you have further questions don't hesitate to call StrokeLine on 1800 787 653 Mon-Fri 9am-5pm.Thanks Simone (Occupational Therapist for StrokeLine)
Loading reply form...