Acute Cerebral Infarction Symptoms and Their Impact

Motor Function Impairment

One-sided weakness or paralysis is a hallmark symptom of acute cerebral infarction. Patients may experience difficulty moving one side of the body. In mild cases, this may manifest as clumsiness or trouble performing fine motor tasks, such as buttoning a shirt. In more severe cases, the affected side may become completely immobile, leading to total paralysis on that side of the body.

Sensory Disturbances

Another common symptom involves sensory dysfunction, where individuals may feel numbness or a lack of sensation in one side of the body. This can impair the ability to perceive pain, temperature, touch, and other sensory stimuli. These disturbances can significantly affect daily activities and increase the risk of unnoticed injuries.

Speech and Cognitive Difficulties

When the infarction affects the dominant hemisphere of the brain—typically the left side in most people—it can lead to language impairments, including both expressive (motor) and receptive (sensory) aphasia. Patients may struggle to form coherent sentences or understand spoken or written language. In addition to speech issues, cognitive decline may occur, such as slowed thinking, reduced attention span, and memory problems.

Other Neurological Symptoms

Acute cerebral infarction can also lead to a variety of other neurological symptoms, such as ataxia (loss of coordination), dysphagia (difficulty swallowing), dysarthria (slurred speech), and diplopia (double vision). These symptoms can vary in severity and often depend on the specific area of the brain affected by the loss of blood flow.