Vascular Surgeons Link Hiccups Lasting 48 Hours to Stroke Risk

2 articles · Updated · HuffPost · Jun 20

Persistent hiccups can signal a rare brainstem stroke—especially when they appear with dizziness, imbalance, double vision, slurred speech or trouble swallowing, vascular surgeons said.
Brainstem strokes can disrupt the medulla’s hiccup reflex pathway, triggering uncontrollable hiccups; these posterior-circulation strokes may also lack classic one-sided weakness and instead present with subtler symptoms.
Doctors said hiccups alone are almost never a stroke, but advised urgent evaluation if they last more than 48 hours, become severe, or start suddenly alongside neurological symptoms.
Stroke remains a major U.S. health threat, occurring every 40 seconds and causing a death every 3 minutes 14 seconds, underscoring the need to act quickly when unusual warning signs appear.