A lot of people wonder what the chance of having a full stroke is if they have had a TIA?

Having a TIA is a sign that part of your brain is not getting enough blood. This puts you at immediate risk of stroke. It's hard to say what your exact chance of having a stroke is, as this can depend on a number of factors.

Without treatment, about one in four people who have had a TIA go on to have a full-blown stroke within a few years. Furthermore, your risk of stroke is highest straight after you have a TIA - one in five people who have a TIA have a stroke in the following month, and the risk is greatest in the first three days after a TIA.

This is why it's so important that you don't ignore any symptoms that could be due to a TIA, but get them checked out by your GP straight away. Making changes to your lifestyle, such as stopping smoking and improving your diet, and getting the appropriate treatment, whether it's with medicines or surgery, can greatly reduce your risk of having a stroke.

Actually only about one in 10 to three in 10 people who have a stroke for the first time have had a TIA before. Most people who have a stroke don't have any warning signs before they have one. For this reason, if someone seems to be having symptoms of a stroke, you shouldn't wait to see whether their symptoms will go away, but should seek immediate medicine attention.
A good way to recognise whether someone has had a TIA or a stroke is to use the face-arm-speech test (abbreviated to FAST). This involves checking for three of the main symptoms of TIA and stroke - facial weakness, arm weakness and speech problems.

If you do have a TIA you will have to stop driving for at least one month. Legally, under the rules set by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), in the UK you must not drive for at least one month after you have been diagnosed as having had a TIA, even if you don't have any symptoms during this time.
The rules are put in place to protect you and other drivers - you are at increased risk of having a stroke in the first month after a TIA, and having a stroke while you are driving would be very dangerous.

You can start driving again with a group 1 licence (eg, for a car or motorcycle) one month after your TIA, as long as you don't have any further symptoms, such as problems with your vision or with feeling in your arms and legs. Ask your GP for advice if you're not sure whether you should drive. You do not need to notify the DVLA about your condition unless you are still having symptoms after one month.

Another thing I meant to add is that if you have had a number of TIAs over a short period of time, you might need to stop driving for longer (at least three months), and you will need to notify the DVLA.

You will not be able to drive larger vehicles such as lorries and buses (group 2 licence) for at least a year after a TIA. Make sure that you get the right information for your case.