How Can AFib Cause a Stroke?
The heart has four parts and a signal system that tells each part when to squeeze (contract) and when to relax. When you have AFib, your signals are disorganized, and make two of the heart parts shake instead of fully squeezing. Blood can pool in those parts of the heart and form a clot. A clot is clumped blood that becomes solid.
Clots can break off from their original place and move through your bloodstream. The path of blood from the heart goes to the brain where the clot can get stuck in a blood vessel and block it off. A blocked blood vessel in the brain can cause a stroke.