THE FACTS Strokes and children

The Children's Hemiplegia and Stroke Association, or CHASA, a nonprofit organization, offers support and information to families of infants, children and young adults who have had a stroke or other neurological disorder. Here are some childhood stroke facts.
A stroke occurs when a blood clot, piece of plaque or other material interrupts the blood supply to any part of the brain, resulting in tissue death and loss of brain function.
Stroke is among the top 10 causes of death in children.
Six of every 100,000 children will have a stroke each year; 12 percent of those children will die from a stroke.
Each year, one of every 4,000 infants will have a stroke before or around the time of birth. These children may experience hemiplegia (a form of cerebral palsy), seizures (epilepsy), speech and language difficulties, learning differences, and may require physical, occupational and speech therapies.
In infants and very young children, stroke symptoms include seizures, coma and paralysis of one side of the body. In infants, the signs of a stroke may not appear until months, perhaps even years later. It may be that the child can't use one hand as agilely as the other or the child may have a slight limp.
The sooner a stroke in children is diagnosed and treated, the better the chance they'll have to recover. In a child where the brain is still developing, it is thought that the developing brain may be able to take over for the functions that have been lost as a result of the stroke.
In older children, stroke symptoms can include a sudden paralysis of one side of the body, difficulty with vision and/or difficulty with swallowing.
Half of the children who have a stroke will have serious, long-term neurological, behavioral, physical and educational difficulties.
Source: CHASA, affiliated with the American Stroke Association/National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke