Posted: 5/8/2019
Four out of five strokes are preventable
Some people believe strokes only happen to the elderly. Others think strokes are rare or that pain is the leading stroke symptom. Stroke experts at Parkland Health & Hospital System say there’s plenty of misinformation about causes, symptoms and treatment of strokes and during Stroke Awareness Month this May, they’re working to dispel some of the dangerous – and potentially deadly – myths surrounding stroke.
“The first thing everyone should know about stroke are the symptoms because it’s vital to get medical treatment quickly,” said Mark Johnson, MD, Section Chief of the Cerebrovascular Diseases and Stroke Program overseeing Stroke Programs at Parkland and UT Southwestern Medical Center and Professor of Neurology and Neurotherapeutics at UT Southwestern Medical Center. “About 85 percent of strokes are caused by a blood clot blocking a blood vessel to the brain. These strokes can be treated with a drug called tPA, but in most cases, it must be administered within four-and-a-half hours of the onset of the stroke. There are also endovascular procedures that can remove clots in large arteries in less than 6 hours and in some cases even up to 24 hours.”
The second key fact, said Alejandro Magadan, MD, Medical Director of Parkland’s Stroke Program and Assistant Professor of Neurology at UT Southwestern Medical Center, is that most strokes can be prevented. “Healthy lifestyle choices can significantly lower your stroke risk,” he said. “Eating a healthy diet, regular exercise, avoiding tobacco products and excessive alcohol along with regular treatment of medical conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol can prevent stroke up to 80% of the time.”
Here are some of the most prevalent stroke myths – and the facts you should know:
Myth 1: Strokes are rare. False. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that nearly 800,000 Americans have a stroke each year and stroke is the fifth leading cause of death in the U.S. Strokes are a leading cause of permanent disability in survivors.
Myth 2: Strokes are the same as heart attacks. Both conditions are vascular diseases – meaning they affect the heart or the blood vessels, but they are not the same. “Heart attacks affect the blood vessels in the heart, while strokes are often called ‘brain attacks’ because they affect the blood vessels in the neck or brain,” Dr. Johnson said.
Myth 3: Only old people have strokes. Fact - strokes can strike people of any age, even babies. “The risk of stroke does increase as you age, but nearly 25% of strokes occur in people under age 65,” Dr. Magadan said. “Strokes are now tending to happen in a younger population and are no longer due to rare causes, but to sedentary life style choices and increasing incidence of hypertension, diabetes and hyperlipidemia at a younger age.”
Myth 4: Strokes can’t be prevented. “This is far from true,” Dr. Johnson said. “You can’t control some stroke risk factors, like heredity, age, gender, and ethnicity. But there are many avoidable factors that put people at higher risk. Smoking doubles the risk of stroke, and uncontrolled high blood pressure and high cholesterol also increase stroke risk. Stop smoking, eat a healthy diet, limit alcohol intake and get regular exercise to reduce your risk of stroke.”
Myth 5: Pain is the most common symptom of stroke. “Most strokes cause little or no pain,” Dr. Magadan stated. “Only about 30% of people will experience a headache with stroke. The most common symptoms of stroke include sudden onset of numbness or weakness on one side, double vision, confusion, lack of coordination and trouble speaking. Anyone with these symptoms needs emergency medical help. Call 911 immediately.”
Myth 6: You can “sleep off” symptoms. “If you delay getting medical help, you put yourself at much greater risk of death or serious disabilities from stroke,” Dr. Johnson emphasized. “It’s a bad idea to ‘wait it out’ or ‘sleep it off’ if you experience stroke symptoms.”
Myth 7: Stroke isn’t hereditary. “Your risk of stroke is higher if your parent, grandparent or sibling had a stroke,” Dr. Magadan said.
Myth 8: Stroke isn’t treatable. Fact: Getting fast treatment is important to preventing death and disability from stroke. “Learn the signs of stroke and call 9-1-1 right away if you think someone might be having a stroke,” Dr. Johnson said. Even with recent advances in acute stroke therapy, most people continue to miss the opportunity for therapy by waiting to seek help.
“BEFASTT” is a simple acronym to help people recognize and remember what to do in a stroke emergency:
o Balance: Do they have a sudden loss of balance?
o Eyes: Do they have a sudden loss of vision in one or both eyes?
o Facial droop: When they smile, does one side of their face droop?
o Arm drift: When they raise both arms, does one arm drift downward?
o Slurred speech: When they repeat a sentence, are any of the words slurred?
o Terrible headache: Do they have a sudden, severe headache with other neurological deficits?
o Time is key: If a person shows any of the above symptoms, call 911.
With one or more of these symptoms of stroke, don’t hesitate, call 911 for medical help. Getting to a hospital rapidly will likely lead to better recovery and less damage to the brain.
For more information about stroke, visit https://www.strokeassociation.org/. For more information about Parkland, visit www.parklandhospital.com