Every 40 second in America someone suffers from a stroke, while every 4 minutes someone dies from it. These statistics are not as grim as they could be. Although with the widespread use of blood pressure medications and measures to control the blood pressure and cholesterol, the number of people who die from stroke has decreased but still it remains the number one cause for disability in the United States.
Stroke can even occur in younger people (about a quarter of strokes occur in people less than 65 years of age).
Unfortunately only about 30% of stroke victims recognize the symptoms and get to the hospital in time to receive brain saving medications.
You lose somewhere on the order of 2 million brain cells a minute during a stroke and so it is important to educate the common people to know the symptoms so that they can get the immediate help and prevent the brain damage and resulting disability.
In this article i would like to mention some of the more subtle symptoms of stroke, how you can prevent one and the new developments in the diagnosis and treatment of this debilitating brain disease.
Be FAST:
You may have probably seen the FAST acronym from the American Heart Association which says
- F is for Face
- A is for Arm weakness
- S is for Speaking difficulties
- T is for Time to call.
If you notice any facial asymmetry, or weakness in your arms or any difficulty with speech you must seek immediate medical help. Here we can add balance difficulties or any visual problems as well.
Don't Second Guess Yourself:
Many times when people even know the symptoms they may not recognize what is happening or may
not take it serious. This may be a reflection of the fact that the brain is affected , so they are not thinking clearly. Because of the time sensitive nature of the brain damage after stroke many people when come to the hospital may be too late to have good results from the treatment.
not take it serious. This may be a reflection of the fact that the brain is affected , so they are not thinking clearly. Because of the time sensitive nature of the brain damage after stroke many people when come to the hospital may be too late to have good results from the treatment.
If you could not move your arm never think that it is just asleep and get better by itself, seek immediate medical help.
Go To A Major Medical Center:
Patients with severe stroke should be heading to the bigger hospitals if possible, where there is a treatment available to remove the clot from the brain that is stopping the blood supply.
New Treatment Options: Stem cell therapy is under research where the doctors can harvest the stem cells from the patient's blood and culture them so as to re inject into the patient and grow the dead brain cells. This treatment is still in the stage of experimentation but hopefully in the next few years some real advancement in this procedure can help patients to recover from major stokes and resulting disability.
Prevention: 90% of all strokes can be prevented from occurring in the first place by eating a healthy diet, regular exercise and managing your blood pressure and blood cholesterol.
In practical terms , the lower you can get your blood pressure, the better, 120/80 mmHg is fantastic but less than 140/90 mmHg is the preferred range.
For Exercise it is recommended an hour five times a week, and it has to be a decent level of activity- alight walk may not be sufficient to keep the heart healthy.
Avoid smoking and alcohol and high fat diets.
In recent studies it shows people with poor oral hygiene there is higher risk for heart attack and stroke so keep a routine to brush your teeth and visit your dentist regularly for cleaning.
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