Stroke: A Historical Overview And Contemporary Management

The article outlines the evolution of the concept of stroke to date. A milestone of the modern understanding of stroke was laid in the mid-nineteenth century by Rudolf Virchow, with his seminal research on thromboembolism as a cause of brain ischemia. The historical overview is followed by a description of the changes in the etiology, diagnosis and treatment of ischemic stroke over the past fi ft y years and a review of literature data on recent advances in stroke prevention and management.