One thing we do for treatment is to assess those risk factors and minimize them.
If they say yes, I'll ask, ?How's that working for you?' You don't have to nag them.
Imagine you break off your blood supply to the brain. Part of that brain gets no blood supply at all. It scars up and dies.
Usually there's some of the brain tissue that they're not going to get back but some vulnerable brain around the stroke that is salvageable.