Which of the following is NOT listed as a common cause of hemorrhagic stroke?

• A. Ischemic stroke
• B. Trauma
• C. Hypertension
• D. Aneurysm

Answer: (A)

Understanding how hemorrhagic strokes develop hinges on bleeding from ruptured vessels, rather than blockage. Hypertension damages small penetrating arteries and can cause their rupture, leading to intracerebral hemorrhage. Trauma can tear vessels and cause bleeding within the brain. An aneurysm can weaken a vessel wall and rupture, producing a hemorrhagic event such as subarachnoid bleeding. These are direct, common causes of bleeding in the brain.

Ischemic stroke, by contrast, results from a clot blocking blood flow. While an ischemic stroke can sometimes be followed by bleeding into the damaged area (hemorrhagic transformation), that is a complication of an ischemic event, not a primary cause of hemorrhagic stroke. So the option that is not a common cause of hemorrhagic stroke is ischemic stroke.