A stroke can cause numbness on the right side of the body. This occurs when the brain’s blood supply is interrupted, either by a blocked blood vessel or a burst blood vessel, depriving brain cells of oxygen and leading to damage. The specific symptoms depend on the area of the brain affected.
How Stroke Affects Sensation
The brain uses contralateral control, where one side of the brain manages the opposite side of the body. The left hemisphere controls movement and processes sensation for the right side, including touch, temperature, and proprioception (the sense of body position).
A stroke in the left hemisphere can damage areas like the somatosensory cortex. This can result in sensory changes, including numbness, tingling, or reduced sensation on the right side of the body. The specific extent and type of numbness depend on the severity and exact location of the brain injury.
Sensory information from the right side of the body travels through nerve pathways that cross to the left side of the brain before reaching the somatosensory cortex. A disruption along this pathway due to a stroke can impair the brain’s ability to process these signals. Thus, a stroke affecting the left side of the brain commonly manifests with sensory deficits on the body’s right side.
Recognizing Other Stroke Symptoms
While numbness can indicate a stroke, other common symptoms are important to recognize. The F.A.S.T. acronym serves as a guide to identify these sudden changes. Prompt recognition can make a significant difference in outcomes.
“F” stands for Face drooping: one side of the face might droop or feel numb, making a smile uneven. “A” indicates Arm weakness: one arm may be weak or numb, making it difficult to raise both arms evenly.
“S” refers to Speech difficulty: slurred speech, trouble speaking clearly, or difficulty understanding what others are saying. “T” represents Time to call emergency services. Any of these sudden symptoms warrant immediate medical attention.
Other sudden symptoms include blurred vision, loss of sight in one or both eyes, difficulty walking, dizziness, loss of balance, or a sudden severe headache with no known cause. These symptoms often appear abruptly and should not be ignored.
Immediate Response to Suspected Stroke
If a stroke is suspected, immediately call emergency services. This ensures trained medical professionals can begin lifesaving treatment as quickly as possible. Rapid intervention can significantly reduce brain damage and improve recovery prospects.
Medical professionals use the phrase “time is brain” to emphasize the urgency of stroke treatment. For every minute a stroke goes untreated, approximately 1.9 million brain cells can die. The sooner treatment begins, the greater the chance of preserving brain function and minimizing long-term disability.
Do not drive the affected individual to the hospital. Emergency medical services (EMS) personnel can begin initial assessments and treatments on the way to the hospital, transporting the patient directly to a specialized stroke center. This expedited process saves critical time.
When emergency services arrive, provide them with the exact time symptoms first appeared. This information assists medical teams in determining treatment options, as some interventions are time-sensitive.
Sensory Recovery After Stroke
After a stroke, sensory deficits like numbness can improve over time, though recovery varies for each individual. While some numbness might persist, many individuals experience a degree of sensory return. This recovery is supported through dedicated rehabilitation efforts.
Rehabilitation therapies, including occupational and physical therapy, help individuals regain sensation and function. Occupational therapists, for example, focus on improving a person’s ability to perform daily activities by addressing motor function, sensation, and coordination.
Sensory re-education is a rehabilitation technique used to retrain the brain to process sensory signals. This involves exercises such as touching objects with different textures, identifying various temperatures, or engaging in mirror therapy. These activities stimulate neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to reorganize and form new neural connections after injury.
Repetitive practice of these sensory retraining exercises is important for promoting sensation return. Working closely with therapists to develop a personalized rehabilitation plan can help optimize recovery and improve the brain’s interpretation of sensory input.