A “mini-stroke,” medically known as a **transient ischemic attack (TIA)**, can be easy to miss because symptoms may disappear within minutes or hours.
But temporary symptoms do **not** mean the episode was harmless.
A TIA happens when blood flow to part of the brain is temporarily blocked. Its symptoms are essentially the same as those of a stroke, and the American Stroke Association describes a TIA as a **“warning stroke”** because it can signal a higher risk of a full stroke afterward.
If sudden neurological symptoms appear, emergency medical assessment is needed even if the person feels completely normal again afterward.
## 1. Sudden Weakness on One Side
One of the most important warning signs is sudden weakness affecting the:
