(NewsNation) — Can you have a stroke without knowing? The short answer is yes.
They’re called silent strokes.
Strokes in general occur when a blood vessel carrying oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked or ruptured, causing brain damage. Silent strokes can also cause brain damage but may not show symptoms that are easy to identify.
Also called undetected strokes, silent strokes are more common with older age, according to the American Stroke Association, a division of the American Heart Association.
Typically, stroke symptoms include:
- Numbness or weakness in the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body.
- Confusion, trouble speaking or difficulty understanding speech.
- Trouble seeing in one or both eyes.
- Difficulty walking, dizziness, loss of balance or lack of coordination.
Doctors can detect a silent stroke through a brain scan. Subtle symptoms such as forgetfulness or difficulty moving around may also be hints that something isn’t right.
Contributing factors that increase the likelihood of stroke include high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes and an irregular heartbeat.
On Monday, the Vatican revealed that the cause of Pope Francis’ death was a stroke that put him into a coma and led to heart failure.
Francis had chronic lung disease, and he was admitted to a hospital on Feb. 14 for a respiratory crisis that developed into double pneumonia. He spent 38 days there, the longest hospitalization of his 12-year papacy.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
