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Stroke and blindness

03/24/2008

Question:

My sister is 57. She had a stroke that has left her blind except for being able to see just a small amount out of the corner of her left eye.It has been four months,her Dr. said she has a clot in the artery in the back of her brain on the left side Is there anything that could help her? Also,can this clot move and do furher damage? She is on a blood thinner. Thankyou for any suggestions or hope you can give.

Answer:

Once a stroke has occurred, (meaning that a blood clot has formed and stopped blood flow such that permanent brain damage has occurred), then recovery depends upon the ability of the remaining intact brain to take over the function that was lost. This type of recovery can lead to improvement over months or even years after the stroke. Traditionally, damage to the occipital lobe (the back of the brain) associated with visual loss was thought to be something that doesn’t recover too well, but recent reports suggest that recovery can occur.

Proper medical treatment to prevent stroke should be discussed with your local doctor. It sounds as if blood thinners may well be appropriate.

I hope this helps.

For more information:

Go to the Stroke health topic.