Stroke Risk and Awareness

This article about stroke risk and awareness was written for the CBS online News on April 19, 2010.

Study: Most Having Minor Stroke Don't Know It

Almost 70 percent of the people in a recent British study who had a minor stroke weren't aware of it, and many didn't seek treatment until after it could have been most effective, increasing chances of serious problems later, says CBS News Medical Correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton.

Hormone Replacement Therapy: Women who take hormone replacement therapy may have a slightly increased stroke risk.

There are certain symptoms you should be aware of so that you will seek medical treatment immediately when you experience one or more of the following:

• Sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body
• Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding
• Sudden vision difficulty - trouble seeing in one or both eyes
• Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
• Sudden, severe headache with no known cause

If you will notice, all of the signs or symptoms of a stroke are sudden in nature. You could save yourself or your loved one if you commit this list to memory.

Conclusion

If you suspect someone is having a stroke it is crucial that you get that person medical treatment. If the person having a stroke is treated within three hours of the onset of the stroke, that person has a good chance of recovery.

Ischemic strokes, the most common type of strokes, can be treated with a drug called t-PA, that dissolves blood clots obstructing blood flow and oxygen to the brain.

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