Affect : Stroke

• Affect
  • Patients who suffer a stroke may have difficulty controlling their emotions
  • Emotional responses may be exaggerated or unpredictable
    • Magnified by
      • Depression
      • Changes in body image
      • Loss of function
• Intellectual function
  • Both memory and judgment may be impaired as a result of stroke
  • Although impairments can occur with strokes affecting either side of brain, some deficits are related to hemisphere in which stroke occurred
• Spatial-Perceptual alterations
  • Stroke on right side of brain is more likely to cause problems in spatial-perceptual orientation
    • Incorrect perception of self and illness
    • Unilateral neglect of affected side
      • Homonymous hemianopsia
    • Agnosia
    • Apraxia
• Elimination
  • Most problems with urinary and bowel elimination occur initially and are temporary
  • When a stroke affects one hemisphere of brain, prognosis for normal bladder function is excellent