If you are unable to work because of a stroke you may be able to make a TPD claim for a lump sum from the Total & Permanent Disablement insurance contained within your superannuation fund. There is no necessity for you to have been involved in an accident or to have suffered a work related injury to make a TPD claim. If you suffer from total and permanent disability, you may be able to make a TPD claim in addition to receiving your super early as a result of your condition. Our TPD claim solicitors can advise you in detail as to the requirements of a successful submission, they will prepare all relevant paperwork and will obtain full supporting documentation. Our TPD lawyers will give you advice on the likely success of your stroke claim to a super fund, without further obligation. It costs nothing to use our advice service.

Our TPD claim solicitors use a risk free no win no fee arrangement.

We have offices situated in Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney and Darwin.

Stroke TPD

There are basically two kinds of stroke: ischaemic stroke and haemorrhagic stroke. Ischaemic stroke is by far the most common, representing about 85 percent of strokes. In ischaemic strokes, the patient has areas of narrowed arteries leading to the brain. Within the narrowed areas, clots can form and can interfere with the circulation to the brain. Blood clots can also break off and can form “embolic strokes” which are blood clots that originate in other body areas and which break off and lodge in the narrowed arteries. When this happens in the internal carotid artery, the entire half of the brain is affected in most cases and the individual has symptoms of stroke on one entire portion of the body.

In a haemorrhagic stroke, there is bleeding of a vessel in the brain, resulting in damage to nearby brain tissue and increased intra-cranial pressure (the pressure within the skull). It is commonly due to high blood pressure along with weakened areas of the blood vessels, such as in an aneurysm or arteriovenous malformation of the brain blood vessels. A haemorrhagic stroke is considered more severe than an ischaemic stroke because it is more difficult to control. Both types of strokes cause basically the same symptoms but haemorrhagic strokes cause an increase in pressure in the brain and thus are more deadly and can cause seizures.

Symptoms of a stroke include paralysis or weakness on one side of the body, numbness on one side of the body, speech difficulties (which can be a lack of ability to make speech or a lack of ability to understand speech), seizures, a lack of awareness of the left side of the body, visual difficulties, balance and coordination difficulties—all of which are most severe at the time the stroke occurs and gradually gets better over time. With hemorrhagic strokes, there is usually a headache associated with the onset of bleeding.

Certain medications make it more likely for you to have an ischaemic stroke. These can increase your risk for stroke at various levels of the brain’s circulatory system. A common cause of ischaemic stroke in those under the age of 40 is carotid dissection, which is a tear in the lining of the carotid artery. This narrows the artery and causes blockage of the artery. Blood thinning medications can increase the risk of haemorrhagic strokes.

Risk factors for strokes include atrial fibrillation, diabetes, heart disease, family history of stroke, elevated cholesterol, and increasing age. Stroke is more common in those over the age of 65 and increases with advancing age. Men have more strokes than do women except during pregnancy, when women are increasingly at risk for having a stroke.

Haemorrhagic stroke risk factors include alcohol use, liver disease, other bleeding disorders, head trauma, high blood pressure and cocaine use.

The diagnosis of stroke depends on a thorough physical exam and history. The physical exam will show obvious signs of stroke such as hemiparalysis and the history will often show a sudden onset of the symptoms. The vision will be assessed, the reflexes will be assessed, speech will be looked at and the strength of the muscles will be looked at. A CT scan of the head will show an area of damaged brain, or whether or not there is a bleeding area. MRI exams of the brain can also show areas of stroke. Sometimes an ischaemic stroke is not visible right away but at least a scan can show the absence of a haemorrhagic stroke so you know by default that the stroke is ischaemic.

The treatment of a stroke depends on whether the stroke is ischaemic or haemorrhagic. In haemorrhagic strokes, supportive measures are given including treatment for possible seizures. The blood pressure is kept at a low level so that the bleeding is less. In an ischaemic stroke, clot busting drugs can be given along with blood thinners if the stroke is caught within a few hours of having an onset of symptoms. If clot busting drugs are given on time, the person can have a complete or nearly complete resolution of their symptoms over the ensuing several hours.

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