If you don't go to the hospital after a mini-stroke (TIA), you risk having a much more severe stroke soon after, as a TIA is a critical warning sign, with up to 20% of people having a major stroke within 90 days, especially in the first couple of days. Ignoring it means missing urgent diagnosis, treatment (like blood-thinners), and lifestyle changes that drastically cut your risk of permanent disability or death from a full stroke, turning a preventable event into a catastrophe.
Recovering at Home
This can cause sudden symptoms similar to a stroke, such as speech and visual disturbance, and numbness or weakness in the face, arms and legs. But a TIA does not last as long as a stroke. The effects last a few minutes to a few hours and fully resolve within 24 hours.
TIAs last only a few minutes and, unlike full strokes, usually do not cause permanent brain damage or have long-term effects. However, if you've had a TIA, it's very important to take recovery seriously and make lifestyle changes to prevent another stroke in the future.
First Few Weeks After a Stroke. The typical length of a hospital stay after a stroke is five to seven days.
In the emergency department there is no traditional “treatment” for a mini stroke, unlike with a regular stroke, because patients are usually better by the time they get to the hospital. However, patients need to get a proper evaluation from a neurologist and CT or MRI imaging to understand why the TIA happened.
A TIA greatly increases your risk of having a stroke in the next 90 days, and half of the strokes that do follow a TIA happen within the next two days. Getting immediate care can help you avoid a much more serious stroke, potentially saving your life and preventing permanent damage and loss of abilities.
The risk of stroke after transient ischemic attack is somewhere between 2% and 17% within the first 90 days. Among patients with transient ischemic attack, one in five will have a subsequent stroke (the most common outcome), a heart attack or die within one year.
After a suspected TIA, you will normally be advised to have several tests including:
To treat an ischemic stroke, blood flow must quickly be restored to the brain. This may be done with: Emergency IV medicine. An IV medicine that can break up a clot has to be given within 4.5 hours from when symptoms began.
What Not to Do After a Mini Stroke:
What does a ministroke feel like? A TIA or ministroke mimics a full-blown stroke in both men and women. The warning signs include weakness or numbness that is typically isolated to one side of the body, slurred speech, dizziness and loss of vision. Ministroke symptoms occur suddenly and generally without any warning.
If doctors are not sure what caused your symptoms, you may have a magnetic resonance imaging scan (MRI). This can rule out other causes of the symptoms, such as bleeds or abnormalities in the brain. An MRI can sometimes show the site of the TIA, especially if it's done soon after it happens.
A neurologist will monitor progress, adjust medications, recommend imaging and lab tests, and help patients and their families understand the impact of the stroke and the recovery process. Stroke survivors often face cognitive, emotional, and physical challenges, all of which neurologists are trained to manage.
After 1 month, you may return to driving if you have not had another TIA. One month off driving is required following each episode of TIA. Inform your insurance company that you have had a TIA. If you do not inform your company, you may find that your insurance is invalid.
Complications of TIA – also referred to as “mini-strokes” – may include:
Aspirin and other antiplatelet medicines
You'll probably be given low-dose aspirin straight after a TIA. Aspirin works as an antiplatelet medicine. Platelets are blood cells that help blood to clot. Antiplatelet medicines work by reducing the ability of platelets to stick together and form blood clots.
Some studies have shown a relationship between stress, negative emotions (such as depression or hostility), and risk of TIA or stroke.
So-called transient ischemic attacks can eventually lead to cognitive declines as steep as those following a full-on stroke, new research finds. Kristin Kramer woke up early on a Tuesday morning 10 years ago because one of her dogs needed to go out.
After a TIA, you should get advice on making any lifestyle changes you may need to help reduce your stroke risk. These include being as physically active as you can, eating a healthy diet and stopping smoking. You can find more information and practical tips in our Managing Risk section.
Here are seven signs that you are recovering well from a stroke.
Secondary strokes happen for the same reasons a first stroke occurs. A condition, such as high blood pressure (hypertension), weakens or hardens an artery. Your arteries carry blood from your heart to your brain and the rest of your body.
Most TIA patients will not require admission to hospital and will be assessed and managed as an outpatient. Patients may be seen face to face in a hospital clinic room or have a consultation over the telephone and this will usually happen within the first few days of being referred by your GP.
Typically, medication needs to be given within three hours of when symptoms began. In some cases, that window can be extended to four and a half hours, or more. Another stroke treatment option is for specialized doctors to remove the clot by sending a catheter to the site of the blocked blood vessel.
Stage 2: First 2 weeks
Survivors of major strokes may take longer to leave intensive care. Once discharged, patients with severe side effects will likely be transferred to a long-term acute care facility; those with less serious issues will either be referred to an inpatient or outpatient rehab center.