{"id":310344,"date":"2026-05-11T14:25:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T14:25:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/310344\/"},"modified":"2026-05-11T14:25:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T14:25:12","slug":"when-a-child-has-a-stroke-specialized-care-close-to-home-matters-brand-stories-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/310344\/","title":{"rendered":"When a child has a stroke, specialized care close to home matters \u2022 Brand stories"},"content":{"rendered":"

By: Jasmin Dao, M.D.<\/a>, PhD, neurologist, Neurology Center, Miller Children\u2019s & Women\u2019s Hospital<\/p>\n

Most people associate stroke with older adults, but children can experience strokes too\u2014sometimes with life-changing consequences. What many families in Long Beach may not realize is that they live near the only dedicated pediatric Stroke Center<\/a> in the region, serving children from the South Bay through Orange County, located at Miller Children\u2019s & Women\u2019s Hospital<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This specialized program provides age-specific stroke expertise for infants and children, combining advanced imaging, rapid diagnosis, and coordinated follow-up care designed specifically for young patients\u2014an option few hospitals in the region can offer.<\/p>\n

A stroke occurs when blood flow to the brain is interrupted by a blocked blood vessel or bleeding in the brain. Pediatric stroke is uncommon, but certain conditions significantly increase a child\u2019s risk. Newborns are particularly vulnerable around the time of birth, when changes in circulation can lead to neonatal stroke, sometimes identified through seizures or weakness and confirmed with advanced neuroimaging<\/a>, including magnetic resonance imaging and noninvasive transcranial Doppler screening.<\/p>\n

Older children may be at higher risk if they have conditions such as sickle cell disease<\/a>, congenital heart disease<\/a>, immune disorders or blood clotting disorders, and benefit from specialized monitoring to reduce the risk of a first or recurrent stroke.<\/p>\n

One of the biggest challenges with pediatric stroke is recognition. Symptoms in children can differ from those seen in adults and may be subtle, especially in infants and young children. Seizures are often one of the most common early signs in babies, while older children may experience symptoms that overlap with adult stroke signs.<\/p>\n

Warning signs may include:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Seizures, especially in newborns or infants<\/p>\n

\u2022 Sudden weakness on one side of the body<\/p>\n

\u2022 Difficulty speaking or understanding language<\/p>\n

\u2022 Problems with balance or coordination<\/p>\n

\u2022 Severe headache or unusual sleepiness<\/p>\n

\u2022 Changes in vision or unexplained fatigue<\/p>\n

If a child shows any of these symptoms, emergency care is critical. Early diagnosis and treatment during the first hours and days after a stroke can significantly improve recovery and reduce the risk of recurrence.<\/p>\n

The Stroke Center at Miller Children\u2019s & Women\u2019s provides coordinated, long\u2011term care for children who have experienced a stroke or are identified as high\u2011risk, including patients with sickle cell disease and vulnerable newborns. Care is delivered within a full\u2011service children\u2019s hospital, allowing families to access comprehensive stroke services in one location.<\/p>\n

Supporting this care, the Neurodiagnostic Lab<\/a> at MemorialCare Long Beach Medical Center<\/a> and Miller Children\u2019s & Women\u2019s is accredited by ABRET<\/a> and is one of only seven locations in California to receive ABRET Long\u2011Term Monitoring<\/a> accreditation, reflecting a strong commitment to advanced neurological testing for pediatric stroke and seizure care.<\/p>\n

For families in Long Beach and surrounding communities, having access to this level of specialized pediatric stroke care nearby can ease stress during a medical emergency and support better long\u2011term outcomes. Miller Children\u2019s & Women\u2019s Hospital also provides extensive outpatient follow\u2011up through the Cherese Mari Laulhere Children\u2019s Village<\/a>, supporting children as they regain skills, reach developmental milestones and navigate life after stroke.<\/p>\n

To learn more about advanced stroke care at Miller Children\u2019s, visit millerchildrens.org\/stroke<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By: Jasmin Dao, M.D., PhD, neurologist, Neurology Center, Miller Children\u2019s & Women\u2019s Hospital Most people associate stroke with…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":306328,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[131,133,132,2224],"class_list":["post-310344","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-long-beach","tag-long-beach","tag-long-beach-headlines","tag-long-beach-news","tag-memorialcare"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/310344","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=310344"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/310344\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/306328"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=310344"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=310344"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=310344"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}