Doctors are using a new term, “dystextia,” to refer to a potentially important signifier of stroke characterized by the sending of nonsensical text messages, according to a Reuters article.
Three doctors from Boston’s Harvard Medical School used the term in the Archives of Neurology, referring to a case in which a 25-year-old pregnant woman began sending garbled texts to her husband such as: “every where thinging days nighing,” and “Some is where!”
He took her to the emergency room, where doctors noted several signs of a stroke, including disorientation, inability to use her limbs properly and difficulty speaking.
The article notes that stroke is rare for a woman her age.
But pregnancy is a risk factor for stroke. So is use of birth control pills, which lead to a higher risk of the blood clots that can trigger strokes.
Though all birth control pills can increase the risk of blood clots, a number of studies indicate that pills with the synthetic hormone drospirenone can increase that risk up to three times compared to other oral contraceptives on the market. Pills with drospirenone include Yasmin, Yaz, Beyaz and Ocella.
According to the Reuters story, doctors used a magnetic resonance imaging scan to confirm that part of the young mother’s brain wasn’t getting enough blood. Her symptoms went away quickly. With the help of low-dose blood thinners, she got through the rest of her pregnancy with no trouble.
Patients should consult their doctors before making any changes in their medication. A consultation with a Beyaz lawyer is also important if there are significant injuries while on Beyaz or similar birth control pills.
See the article here:
https://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/24/us-health-dystextia-idUSBRE8BN0LO20121224
