Hemiplegia is most often caused by which event?

• A. A Stroke or Head Trauma
• B. A Urinary Tract Infection
• C. Osteoarthritis
• D. Parkinson's Disease

Answer: (A)

Damage to the brain or its movement pathways on one side causes hemiplegia. The event most often linked to this is a stroke, which stops blood flow to parts of the brain and kills neurons that control motor function, leading to weakness or paralysis on the opposite side of the body. Head trauma can similarly injure those motor pathways and produce unilateral paralysis. Other conditions like a urinary tract infection, osteoarthritis, or Parkinson's disease affect other systems or cause different movement issues, but they don’t typically cause sudden, one-sided paralysis. So stroke or head trauma best explains hemiplegia.