Exploring Cardiac Causes of Stroke in Young Individuals

This chapter delves into the various cardiac causes of stroke in young individuals, emphasizing the importance of thorough cardiac evaluation to identify less common pathologies like congenital cardiac issues, cardiomyopathies, cardiac tumors, and endocarditis. It discusses the increased risk of hemorrhage with embolic strokes in endocarditis cases and the challenges in treatment decisions. The chapter also covers the relevance of PFO in stroke cases, the criteria for PFO closure, the value of extensive evaluation in cryptogenic stroke scenarios, and the clinical significance of thrombophilias like antiphospholipid syndrome and arterial dissections.