Hemorrhagic Stroke

Strokes that occur as a result of a weakened vessel that ruptures and bleeds into the brain where the blood accumulates and compresses the surrounding brain tissue. Hemorrhagic strokes may result in an intracerebral hemorrhage (the bleeding takes place within the brain itself) or a subarachnoid hemorrhage (a vessel on the surface of the brain bursts and the bleeding takes place between the brain and the skull). The amount of bleeding and the location in the brain determine the severity of the cerebral hemorrhage. Two types of weakened blood vessels can cause hemorrhagic stroke: aneurysms and arteriovenous malformations (AVMs). An aneurysm is a ballooning of a weakened region of a blood vessel. If left untreated, the aneurysm continues to weaken until it ruptures and bleeds into the brain. An arteriovenous malformation is a cluster of abnormally formed blood vessels. Any one of these vessels can rupture, also causing bleeding into the brain. People with cerebral hemorrhages often die as a result of the pressure built up in the brain, but if they survive, their recovery may be more complete than those who have an ischemic stroke.