This Article  • Full text  • PDF  • Spanish PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Related article  • Similar articles in JAMA  Topic Collections  • Neurology  • Cerebrovascular Disease  • Dementias  • JAMA Patient Page  • Alert me on articles by topic

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

With symptoms lasting for up to 24 hours, transient neurological attacks are a warning sign that cerebrovascular disease (disease of the brain's blood vessels) may exist. Also known as a mini-stroke, a transient ischemic attack (TIA) is a focal (affecting one body part or system) type of transient neurological attack. Individuals who experience a TIA are at increased risk of having a stroke. Because TIAs can be caused by several factors, it is important to have an accurate diagnosis for proper treatment and prevention plans. The December 26, 2007, issue of JAMA includes an article about transient neurological attacks.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS

• Sudden loss of vision
  
• Double vision
  
• Slurred or garbled speech
  
• Trouble finding the right words in conversation
  
• Weakness, paralysis, numbness, or tingling in an extremity (hand, arm, foot, leg) or in the face
  
• Loss of consciousness
  
• Sudden loss of balance or difficulty walking
  

Janet M. Torpy, MD, Writer; Cassio Lynm, MA, Illustrator; Richard M. Glass, MD, Editor

RELATED ARTICLE

Incidence and Prognosis of Transient Neurological Attacks
Michiel J. Bos, Marie Josee E. van Rijn, Jacqueline C. M. Witteman, Albert Hofman, Peter J. Koudstaal, and Monique M. B. Breteler
JAMA. 2007;298(24):2877-2885.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT