New Delhi. New Delhi: Thursday 12 August 2010: One out of every 4,000 babies born in the United States will have a stroke before they’re 28 days old, according to new guidelines issued by the American Heart Association on managing childhood stroke.

They can occur in utero, they can occur in the neonatal period, and they can occur in older children said Padma Shri and Dr B C Roy National Awardee Dr K K Aggarwal, President Heart Care Foundation of India, BSNL Dil ka Darbar & MTNL Perfect Health Mela. One of the biggest differences between childhood strokes and those that happen in older people is that far fewer of strokes in children are what’s known as ischemic strokes. In an ischemic stroke, the blood supply to the brain is cut off, sometimes by a blood clot or possibly due to sickle cell disease. Without blood, the brain can not get the oxygen it needs to survive. Ischemic strokes are the most common types of strokes in adults, accounting for 80 to 85 percent of strokes. In people under 18, about 55 percent of strokes are ischemic.

About 45 percent of strokes in children are hemorrhagic. Hemorrhagic strokes occur when a blood vessel in or on the brain bursts, causing blood to pool in the brain and depriving it of oxygen.

Some of the risk factors for stroke in childhood include sickle cell disease, heart disease, trauma and certain infections, according to the AHA guidelines.

Symptoms include:

• Sudden weakness or numbness occurring on the face arms or legs, especially if it’s one–sided.

• Sudden difficulty speaking or understanding what’s being said.

• Confusion.

• Sudden trouble walking or a loss of balance.

• Dizziness.

• Sudden vision loss or difficulty seeing.

• Severe, sudden–onset headache.