Diagnosis & Testing
Having a stroke is an emergency situation. Diagnosis includes:
- Neurological exams
- Electrocardiogram (ECG, EKG) —a test that records the heart's activity by measuring electrical currents through the heart muscle
- Brain and blood vessel imaging by:
- CT scan —a type of x-ray that uses a computer to make pictures of the brain. This test helps doctors identify hemorrhagic versus ischemic stroke
- MRI scan —a test that uses magnetic waves to make pictures of the brain
- Ultrasonography—a test that uses sound waves to examine the brain
- Blood tests especially homocysteine, prothrombin time, and other coagulation tests
Some tests may include:
- Arteriography (angiography)—a catheter is placed in a blood vessel in the groin and threaded up to the brain; to show arteries in the brain
- Magnetic resonance angiography (MRA)—shows brain blood vessels by mapping blood flow
- CT angiogram (CTA)—this test uses a CT scanner and can give images of the blood vessels inside the brain, after a dye is injected into the veins
- Functional MRI—shows brain activity by picking up signals from oxygenated blood
- Doppler ultrasound —shows narrowing of the arteries (carotid and vertebral) supplying the brain; evaluates flow of blood in brain
- Echocardiography —a test that uses high-frequency sound waves (ultrasound) to examine the size, shape, and motion of the heart; to show if the clot comes from one of the heart's chambers
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