A stroke is essentially the same thing as a heart attack except that it occurs in the brain. Blood vessels in the brain are narrowed by the build up of fat. Eventually one becomes so narrow that it becomes blocked by some foreign material, cutting off blood flow to an area of the brain. As you can see from the graphic above, a stroke results in internal bleeding. A large area of the brain may be affected due to the lack of blood flow. As with a heart attack, a portion of the brain dies when someone has a stroke. If the portion that dies is large enough, the person will die.

Photograph above copyrighted by HEALTH EDCO, INC., Waco, Texas 76702-1207. Permission for limited use granted October, 1997.