Nuvaring Side Effects
Nuvaring side effects involving a stroke occur when a portion of the brain is starved of oxygen-rich blood. This happens when one of the carotid arteries becomes blocked. Blood is prevented from reaching the brain tissue supplied by the occluded artery, which causes the underlying cells to die. This triggers an assortment of stroke symptoms. You may experience side effects ranging from vision and memory problems to one-sided weakness and partial paralysis.
If the resulting brain injury occurs within the temporal or frontal lobes, you may also suffer a language disorder known as aphasia. It presents in different forms, and can pose serious difficulties with communication and interpersonal relationships. Below, we’ll cover each type of aphasia, including the steps toward rehabilitation.
Different Types Of Aphasia
Aphasia presents in three main forms. The first, called Broca’s aphasia, involves the production of speech. The second, called Wernicke’s aphasia, affects the manner in which we comprehend others’ speech. The third is known as global aphasia. This is a severe form of language deficit that combines elements of both Broca’s and Wernicke’s aphasia.
Broca’s aphasia is caused by an injury to the frontal lobe. The stroke survivor will have difficulty forming words or phrases when trying to speak, but will be able to understand what others are saying. This is understandably frustrating to the survivor. Lacking the ability to form intelligible sentences, she must compensate through alternative means of communication.
Wernicke’s aphasia is caused by an injury to the temporal lobe. The survivor will be unable to understand her own speech as well as the speech of others. When speaking, her sentences will make little sense; the words will seem unrelated and jumbled. For example, the survivor might say, “I sidewalk the couch around the toast when pooch,” to mean, “I will walk the dog.” Though she will realize her own speech is unintelligible, she will feel as if the person to whom she is speaking understands her. Awareness of the problem is often accompanied by anger and depression.
As noted, global aphasia involves language deficits characteristic of injury to both the frontal and temporal lobes. The side effects are similar to those described above.
How Aphasia Is Treated Following A Nuvaring Related Stroke
The National Institute Of Neurological Disorders And Stroke estimates that one in four survivors will experience a language deficit. There are several strategies used to treat such deficits, though most are considered experimental; for all but a few methods, sufficient testing regarding their effectiveness is lacking. That said, speech-language pathologists have identified clear benefits to certain forms of treatment.
The main goal of therapy is to help survivors either recover lost language functions or learn another means of communicating their thoughts. When treating Broca’s aphasia, therapy includes repetition of words and phrases as well as exercises involving reading and writing. With Wernicke’s aphasia, the speech pathologist may coach the stroke survivor in aspects of conversation, including being able to identify verbal cues.
Other strategies include cognitive linguistic treatment and group therapy. The former focuses on helping the survivor recognize the emotional content inherent in language and communication. This may include exercises during which the patient learns to identify tonal qualities and facial expressions in the person speaking. These skills improve their comprehension.
Group therapy is valuable because it gives patients the opportunity to use their newly-learned language and communication skills within a social setting. Moreover, they can do so while receiving constructive feedback from pathologists and other stroke survivors suffering from aphasia.
Nuvaring problems caused by a stroke vary for each patient, and as mentioned, depend on the location of the brain injury. For some survivors, impairments may affect cognition and memory. Others may experience physical deficits, such as paralysis, numbness, and loss of bowel and bladder control.
If you or someone you know has suffered from blood clots, stroke, or other Nuvaring side effects, you may be able to file a claim against the manufacturer. Contact an experienced Nuvaring lawsuit lawyer to discuss your options.