What causes strokes?

I know a few causes, but I was just wondering if there were any others I missed.

stroke is sometimes called a brain attack. The problem is with the amount of blood in your brain. The cause of one type of stroke 鈥?ischemic stroke 鈥?is too little blood in the brain. The cause of the other main type of stroke 鈥?hemorrhagic stroke 鈥?is too much blood within the skull.

Ischemic stroke
About 80 percent of strokes are ischemic strokes. They occur when blood clots or other particles block arteries to your brain and cause severely reduced blood flow (ischemia). This deprives your brain cells of oxygen and nutrients, and cells may begin to die within minutes. The most common ischemic strokes are:
Thrombotic stroke. This type of stroke occurs when a blood clot (thrombus) forms in one of the arteries that supply blood to your brain. A clot usually forms in areas damaged by atherosclerosis 鈥?a disease in which the arteries are clogged by an accumulation of cholesterol-containing fatty deposits (plaques). This process can occur within one of the two carotid (kuh-ROT-id) arteries of your neck that carry blood to your brain, as well as in other arteries. An ischemic stroke may also be caused by plaques that completely clog or markedly narrow an artery. This narrowing is called stenosis.
Embolic stroke. An embolic stroke occurs when a blood clot or other particle forms in a blood vessel away from your brain 鈥?commonly in your heart 鈥?and is swept through your bloodstream to lodge in narrower brain arteries. This type of blood clot is called an embolus. It's often caused by irregular beating in the heart's two upper chambers (atrial fibrillation). This abnormal heart rhythm can lead to poor blood flow and the formation of a blood clot.
Hemorrhagic stroke
"Hemorrhage" is the medical word for bleeding. Hemorrhagic stroke occurs when a blood vessel in your brain leaks or ruptures. Hemorrhages can result from a number of conditions that affect your blood vessels, including uncontrolled high blood pressure (hypertension) and weak spots in your blood vessel walls (aneurysms). A less common cause of hemorrhage is the rupture of an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) 鈥?a malformed tangle of thin-walled blood vessels, present at birth. There are two types of hemorrhagic stroke:

Intracerebral hemorrhage. In this type of stroke, a blood vessel in the brain bursts and spills into the surrounding brain tissue, damaging cells. Brain cells beyond the leak are deprived of blood and are also damaged. High blood pressure is the most common cause of this type of hemorrhagic stroke. High blood pressure can cause small arteries inside your brain to become brittle and susceptible to cracking and rupture.
Subarachnoid hemorrhage. In this type of stroke, bleeding starts in a large artery on or near the membrane surrounding the brain and spills into the space between the surface of your brain and your skull. A subarachnoid hemorrhage is often signaled by a sudden, severe "thunderclap" headache. This type of stroke is commonly caused by the rupture of an aneurysm, which can develop with age or result from a genetic predisposition. After a subarachnoid hemorrhage, vessels may go into vasospasm, a condition in which arteries near the hemorrhage constrict erratically, causing brain cell damage by further restricting or blocking blood flow to portions of the brain. Source(s): http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stroke/...

Athletic Training Student/EMT

stress
gender - men are at higher risk than women until age 55, then both sexes are affected equally
smoking
a family history of strokes
already having had a stroke
high blood pressure
ethnic origin (stroke is more common in African-Caribbean people)
high blood cholesterol
diabetes (doubles the risk)
obesity and an inactive lifestyle
having coronary artery disease or peripheral vascular disease (both also are caused by atherosclerosis)
certain congenital heart defects
taking the oral contraceptive for women who smoke
heavy alcohol use and binge drinking (this tends to weaken blood vessels and may lead to falls and head injury)
cocaine use