Stroke: Epidemiology, Risk Factors, Signaling Pathways, and Clinical Management

Stroke can be classified into ischemic stroke (IS), hemorrhagic stroke (HS), and subarachnoid hemorrhage. The high incidence, disability, and mortality rates, especially from IS, place a huge burden on global health. The pathophysiological processes following IS mainly involve energy deficiency, ion homeostasis imbalance, oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, programmed cell death, blood-brain barrier disruption, and cerebral edema. Transient ischemic attack is an early warning sign of IS, characterized by temporary neurological deficits. HS mainly involves primary damage caused by the mass effect of hematoma and secondary damage caused by the toxic components of hematoma. Although advances in acute-phase reperfusion technology have reduced mortality, the fundamental challenge of a narrow therapeutic window limits patient eligibility and long-term recovery outcomes. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of stroke, detailing its epidemiology, risk factors, pathophysiological mechanisms, signaling pathways, and clinical management methods. Here, we focus on the latest research progress in IS and emphasize the hope that regenerative therapies, especially stem cell therapies, offer for stroke patients. This review aims to provide a detailed overview of current research and clinical practice in stroke, propose emerging strategies for treating stroke patients, and provide an outlook on future research directions in this field.