Was Luke Perry too young to have a fatal stroke? The risk of stroke increases with age. But it can be particularly dangerous for adults in middle age (like actor Luke Perry, who was 52. Luke Perry, known for his work on the likes of Beverly Hills, 90210 and, most recently, Riverdale, was confirmed dead on March 4 after he failed to recover from a massive stroke from five days.
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(video courtesy Fox New)Update-March 4, 2019, 1:12 p.m.: Actor Luke Perry died Monday morning following a massive stroke on Wednesday. He was 52.
A rep confirmed Perry's death to ET, providing the following statement:
'Actor Luke Perry, 52, passed away today after suffering a massive stroke. He was surrounded by his children Jack and Sophie, fiancé Wendy Madison Bauer, ex-wife Minnie Sharp, mother Ann Bennett, step-father Steve Bennett, brother Tom Perry, sister Amy Coder, and other close family and friends. The family appreciates the outpouring of support and prayers that have been extended to Luke from around the world, and respectfully request privacy in this time of great mourning. No further details will be released at this time.'
Riverdale and 90210 star Luke Perry has been sedated after being hospitalized for a stroke, according to updates in a TMZreport Thursday. People confirmed the initial news of Perry's condition, with a rep for the actor telling the outlet: 'Mr. Perry is currently under observation at the hospital.'
© Daniel Zuchnik - Getty Images Actor Luke Perry, star of Riverdale and Beverly Hills 90210, has reportedly been sedated in a Los Angeles hospital, where he was brought after suffering a massive stroke.According to TMZ, the 52-year-old actor suffered a “massive” stroke Wednesday morning. Paramedics reportedly responded to Perry's home in Sherman Oaks, California, at around 9:40 a.m., and brought Perry to a Los Angeles hospital. TMZ later reported Perry was in a medically-induced coma, but his rep did not confirm.
Perry's condition is currently unknown following the initial report of his stroke.
The actor rose to fame in the 1990s as Dylan McKay on the popular television program Beverly Hills 90210-a show that’s getting a reboot on Fox this coming summer. Since 2017, he’s starred on Riverdale as Fred Andrews, father of protagonist Archie (played by KJ Apa). He’s also got a part in the upcoming Quentin Tarantino flick, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, which is due in theaters in July, and has previously starred in Melrose Place, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Fifth Element.
© Peter Carrette Archive - Getty Images Luke Perry in his Beverly Hills: 90210 days.What is a stroke?
Fundamentally, a stroke is a “brain attack,” in the words of the National Stroke Association. When blood supply is cut off to an area of the brain, cells deprived of oxygen begin to die. When those cells die, they take brain functions with them; depending on where the damage occurs, patients can lose memories, speech, and motor functions, among other debilitations.
Some symptoms can be treated, though extensive brain damage can lead to permanent problems such as paralysis. You may have seen stroke victims with a drooping face, a common side effect of stroke.
What are signs of stroke in men?
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, early symptoms of stroke may include:
- Numbness in the face, arm, or leg (especially on one side of the body)
- Confusion
- Difficulty seeing
- Difficulty walking
- Severe headache
What causes a stroke?
There are two ways the brain's blood supply can get cut off. The most common, accounting for about 87 percent of all strokes, is an ischemic stroke. That’s when a blood vessel to the brain gets blocked by a blood clot, preventing blood from reaching the brain.
Those clots can originate in two different places. An embolic stroke is when a clot forms elsewhere in the body and finds its way to the brain, until it lodges in a blood vessel. But clots can also form in the arteries that supply blood to the brain-that kind of clot is called a thrombus, and it causes a thrombotic stroke.
Clots aren’t the only way the brain can be deprived of oxygen-carrying blood, though. The much rarer hemorrhagic stroke (about 15 percent of all cases) happens when either a brain aneurysm (a weakening in the artery wall) bursts or a blood vessel leaks. In either case, blood seeps into the brain, where it further damages the brain with swelling and pressure. Hemorrhagic strokes are less common, but more deadly, accounting for about 40 percent of stroke deaths.
There’s also a “stroke-like” phenomenon called a transient ischemic attack (TIA). In that case, blood flow to the brain gets cut off temporarily, producing stroke-like symptoms. But when blood flow returns-because the blood clot has passed through, for example-the effects disappear, with no permanent brain damage. While a TIA doesn’t itself cause permanent harm, it’s an indicator of higher risk of stroke.
© Phil Fisk - Getty Images Legs of medic running with gurney along hospital corridorWho is at risk of stroke?
There’s a common misconception that strokes happen only to the elderly. While stroke risk does increase as we get older, a stroke can happen at any age. Women have more strokes than men, but that’s because they outlive men; at younger ages, like Perry, men are more likely to have strokes. African Americans have a greater risk of stroke, in part because they are more likely to have high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity-other factors that increase stroke risk.
How are strokes treated?
Since most strokes are caused by blood clots, the earliest treatment often involves attacking the clot, either with medication that can dissolve it, or by surgery to remove it, called thrombectomy. Once the immediate risk has past, patients can be put into specialized rehab, depending on the type and severity of their brain damage. People who’ve had one stroke are at a greater risk for another, so over the long term they may be given medications that help prevent clots from forming in the circulatory system. Doctors also treat high cholesterol and high blood pressure to lower stroke risk, as well as encouraging patients to exercise, quit smoking, and lose weight.
How can you prevent strokes?
While some risk factors for stroke are uncontrollable, the National Stroke Association notes that some 80 percent of strokes are preventable. Healthy eating and physical activity help reduce risk, while tobacco use increases it. Studies have also linked alcohol used to higher risk of stroke. And medical factors related to the circulatory system-high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and irregular heartbeat-raise the risk, as does diabetes.
© Science Photo Library - Getty Images View down hospital corridor Published 7:26 PM EST Mar 5, 2019
Corrections & clarifications: An earlier version of this report incorrectly reported the number of stroke deaths per year.
The risk of stroke increases with age. But it can be particularly dangerous for middle-age adults.
The actor and 1990s heartthrob Luke Perry died at 52, his publicist said Monday, following a massive stroke last week.
More than 795,000 Americans each year suffer a stroke. About 140,000 people die each year from stroke, the nation's fifth leading cause of death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Doctors not involved in the 'Beverly Hills, 90210' star's care said that middle-age adults such as Perry can face grave risk from brain swelling after a massive stroke.
'The immediate time after stroke is the most deadly for someone who is young,' said Salman Azhar, director of stroke at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. That's because their brains have not yet shrunk, as they do in older adults.
'There is often times no space in the brain for the swelling to happen. That in and of itself can make these strokes more fatal in the young.'
Ischemic stroke, often cause by a clot that blocks blood flow to the brain, account for 87 percent of strokes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A hemorrhagic stroke, which can be more deadly, occurs when an artery in the brain leaks or ruptures. These types of strokes can be caused by conditions such as high blood pressure or aneurysms, according to the CDC.
Doctors have not said what type of stroke Perry suffered, but either could be fatal outcomes.
Perry was reportedly alert and talking to paramedics after his stroke last Wednesday, but his condition worsened after he was transported to the hospital.
'It is possible that he might have suffered a hemorrhagic stroke that expanded and caused further deterioration,' said Shraddha Mainali, a neurologist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. 'It’s also very possible he suffered an ischemic stroke.'
Mainali said intense pressure within the cranium following an ischemic stroke can build to a peak three to five days after a stroke.
Azhar said younger and middle-age patients can suffer more intense pressure from swelling following a stroke because the brain shrinks as we age. Younger adults often have less space available to alleviate pressure.
'Swelling happens after every stroke,' Azhar said. 'That leads to shifting of brain compartments, leading to more brain damage and eventually death.'
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Doctors have several options to alleviate pressure from swelling following a stroke, depending on the area of the brain that is affected.
They can remove part of the skull to alleviate pressure, Azhar said. They can use a scope-type device to remove blood, or try medications to 'dry the brain out.'
Risk factors for stroke include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking, obesity, and diabetes. One in 3 U.S. adults has at least one of these conditions or habits.
When a stroke occurs, speed can save lives. People who get to a hospital within three hours of their first symptoms have less disability three months later than those for whom care was delayed, the CDC says.
African-Americans' risk for a first stroke is nearly twice as high as for whites. African-Americans have the highest death rate from stroke.