Patient Support and Education

Prevention

There are preventive measures you can take to reduce your chances of cerebrovascular diseases and strokes.

These include:

• Checking your blood pressure regularly to avoid hypertension (high blood pressure)
• Controlling existing high blood pressure by eating a low-sodium diet, maintaining a healthy weight, managing stress, and taking proper medications regularly
• Eating a healthy, low-fat diet
• Exercising regularly to keep your heart and blood vessels healthy
• Limiting alcohol intake to no more than one to two drinks a day
• Quitting smoking
• Seeing your doctor for regular medical check-ups
• Treating diabetes

For more information about prevention techniques, refer to the American Stroke Association.

Resources

The following links provide additional information about cerebrovascular disease and stroke:

DHMC related resources

• Learning About Stroke: A Guide for Patients and Families (PDF)
• Five Things You Need to Know About Stroke (PDF)
• Neurology Department
• Dartmouth Community Medical School Lecture Series – Session 6: Is There Light on the Horizon?
  Making progress in preventing and treating stroke and macular degeneration.
  Speakers: Julie P.W. Bynum, MD, Chris R. Fields, OD, M. Brooke Herndon, MD, Timothy G. Lukovits, MD, Rosalind A. Stevens, MD

Additional resources

• The Stroke Network
• The Internet Stroke Center
• Caring Web: Education and Support for Caregivers of Stroke Survivors
• American Stroke Association
• Stroke Engine (Canadian Partnership for Stroke Recovery)
• MaineHealth Guide for Stroke Patients and Families (PDF)