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Stroke Prevention for At-Risk Patients: A Neurologist’s Perspective

By: | Tags: , , , | May 22nd, 2023

By TeleSpecialists neurologist, Dr. Joshua Johnson

Many people are at risk of having a stroke. Common medical problems such as high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, atrial fibrillation, or a history of heart attack increase stroke risk. These conditions may cause harmful clots to interrupt blood flow to the brain, causing stroke symptoms, including weakness, numbness, difficulty with speaking or comprehension, trouble swallowing, vision problems, or inability to walk. If blood flow is quickly restored to the brain, symptoms can resolve; however, if blood flow to the brain is prevented for too long, brain tissue will die, and stroke symptoms will be permanent.

How to prevent a stroke

Prevention is the most effective stroke treatment because strokes can be permanent and disabling. In addition, strokes are not inevitable, yet many people with stroke risk factors remain stroke-free. Good control of high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, and atrial fibrillation will significantly reduce the chance that a stroke will occur. Your primary care physician can guide you on controlling these risk factors.

Medications for stroke prevention

Some medications can help prevent strokes even if they do not directly treat high blood pressure or diabetes. Aspirin, for example, is an old but powerful and frequently used stroke prevention medication that reduces the chance of dangerous blood clots forming in the arteries. Other so-called “anti-platelet medications,” such as clopidogrel, or blood thinners (anticoagulants), have been shown in extensive scientific trials to prevent strokes when used in the right circumstances.

Other Stroke Prevention Strategies

There are other effective strategies for reducing stroke risk. Perhaps the simplest and most effective treatment is regular exercise, which can improve high blood pressure, diabetes, and high cholesterol. Exercise helps with weight loss, which reduces stroke risk, as well. In addition, smoking cessation has an enormous and beneficial effect on stroke risk. Finally, treating obstructive sleep apnea improves heart health and reduces the chance of having a stroke.

If you develop symptoms that may be due to stroke—sudden onset of weakness, numbness, speaking trouble, vision changes, or difficulty walking or swallowing—it is best to call an ambulance or go directly to the ER, where a medication or procedure may be used to treat the harmful clot causing the stroke. Such treatments, however, must be used within a short time frame, and the sooner a physician can evaluate the symptoms, the more treatment options become available to you. Even if you have a transient ischemic attack (TIA—or a “mini-stroke”) or your stroke symptoms resolve, you should still seek medical help quickly. After a TIA, there is a high short-term risk of a second and potentially permanent stroke.

Work With Your Primary Care Team

Work with your primary care physician to control risk factors to keep yourself stroke-free for life. If you develop stroke-like symptoms—even if you are uncertain that they are due to a stroke—get to an emergency room quickly.

Nattasha Acevedo, MD

Dr. Acevedo received her medical degree from the Ponce School of Medicine in Puerto Rico and did her neurology residency at Montefiore Medical Center in New York. She went on to do a clinical neurophysiology fellowship at Emory School of Medicine in Atla nta, Georgia and then joined private practice in Fort Myers, Florida. She currently resides in San Juan, Puerto Rico. She likes running, paddle boarding and spending time with family.
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Bernadette Borte, MD

Dr. Borte received her medical degree from St. Matthew’s University School of Medicine in Grand Cayman. She completed her neurology residency at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City, Iowa. Her areas of interest include inpatient neurology and acute stroke. When not working, she enjoys spending time outdoors with her family. Dr. Borte joined the TeleSpecialist family in March of 2019.
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Mazen Almidani, MD

Dr. Almidani is board certified in pediatrics by the American Board of Pediatrics and board certified in epilepsy, as well as neurology with special  qualification in child neurology by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology.  Dr. Almidani is happily married with 4 children. His oldest son has autism and his daughter has complicated seizures; both were a drive for him to become a neurologist. Dr. Almidani enjoys soccer, running and spending time with his family. He is very involved with his sons’ therapy and helping with daily challenges. He is double board certified in Pediatric and Adult Neurology and Epilepsy. He sees children and adults. He also participates in charities for children in Syria who may be underprivileged and/or affected by the war. Dr. Almidani joined TeleSpecialists in August 2020.
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Amanda Cheshire, MD

Dr. Cheshire received her medical degree from the University of Louisville School of Medicine in Louisville, Kentucky. She completed her neurology residency at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. She did a fellowship in neurophysiology at the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Dr. Cheshire is double board certified in neurology and clinical neurophysiology. She enjoys traveling, reading and music. She currently resides in Viera, Florida.  Dr. Cheshire joined TeleSpecialists in June 2019.
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Jessica Floyd, MD

Dr. Floyd completed her neurology residency at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida followed by fellowship training in clinical neurophysiology with focus in EEG and epilepsy at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, South Carolina. She has particular interest in hospital neurology and patient education as well as the blossoming specialty of lifestyle medicine. She strives to take advantage of every encounter with patients and medical staff to empower them to do their own research into how daily thoughts, choices, and habits can add up to create greater and longer-lasting brain and neurologic health for ourselves and our loved ones. She lives in Florence, South Carolina with her awesome husband of 13 plus years and three beautiful children. She is an avid yogi, astrologer, and lover of food and all things neurology! Dr. Floyd joined the TeleSpecialist family in July 2017.
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Nancy Futrell, MD

Dr. Futrell received her medical degree from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah. She also did her neurology residency at the University of Utah as well as a research fellowship in cerebral vascular disease at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, Florida. She currently resides in Salt Lake City, Utah. She has authored 2 books and 50 peer reviewed papers. 
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Rebecca Jimenez-Sanders, MD

Dr. Jimenez Sanders received her undergraduate degree from Emory University, and her medical degree from the San Juan Bautista School of Medicine in Puerto Rico. She completed her neurology residency at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Florida, where she also did a specialized headache medicine and facial pain fellowship. She currently resides in Tampa, Florida with her husband and her two daughters. She is also fluent in Spanish and Italian languages, and enjoys photography, baking, boating, and biking.
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Cory Lamar, MD

Dr. Lamar received his medical degree from Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee. He completed his internship and residency at Wake Forest Baptist Health in Winston Salem, North Carolina. Following residency, he completed a clinical fellowship in neurophysiology, with a concentration in epilepsy. He currently resides in Florida and enjoys outdoor activities.
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Clifford Meyers, MD

Dr. Meyers received his medical degree from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island and his MBA from the Simon School of Business at the University of Rochester in Rochester, New York. He completed his neurology residency at the University of Rochester, where he also did a neurophysiology fellowship. Dr. Meyers resides in Webster, New York with his wife and daughter. When not doing teleneurology, he enjoys playing sports with his wife and daughter.
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Tao Tong, MD

Dr. Tong received her medical degree from the University of Miami School of Medicine in Miami, Florida. She completed her neurology residency at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, Florida, where she also did a neuromuscular/EMG fellowship.  She currently resides in College Station, Texas. Dr. Tong is married with two boys. She enjoys spending time with her family, traveling and reading.
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Shubhangi Chumble, MD

Dr. Chumble attended BJ Medical School. She is a board certified neurologist with a subspeciality interest in sleep medicine. Dr. Chumble did her residency at Howard University in Washington DC and has practiced neurology since 2001 in private and corporate settings. She lives in Melbourne, Florida and loves the sunshine state. Her hobbies include yoga, meditation, cooking , traveling and meeting new people. She also loves to do stained glass, pottery and painting. She joined TeleSpecialists in June 2019.
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