It’s ‘Stroke Awareness Month,’ how to identify the signs and symptoms of a stroke
Do you know the signs and symptoms of a stroke? May is ‘National Stroke Awareness Month.’ News Channel 3’s Madison Weil sat down Dr. Kevin Attenhofer, Stroke Medical Director at Desert Regional Medical Center, to learn how to identify and best prevent one from happening.
“Really it’s anything sudden. We always tell people face, arm, leg, speech,” said Dr. Attenhofer. He says signs of a stroke come on rapidly and could affect several parts of the body.
“Facial droop, slurring of the speech, arm weakness and then leg...it could be their leg suddenly giving out,” he explained.
Dr. Attenhofer says the symptoms might not be so obvious and could be mistaken for something less serious: “It could be balance issues, it could be loss of vision in one eye, headache,” he said.
He says stroke symptoms typically impact one side of the body. “A good thing to do is have them smile...sometimes their smile might be crooked or abnormal,” he said.
If you suspect a loved one is having a stroke, have them hold out their arms. “We’ll see the arm drifting, drooping down or they can’t even get the arm up,” he added.
And while some signs are physical, some are also cognitive. “Maybe they can’t understand what you’re saying or you can’t understand what they’re saying,” he said.
Dr. Attenhoffer explains a stroke happens when either when blood vessels burst in brain or more commonly, when there’s a blood clot and part of the brain gets deprived of blood and oxygen.
He says the best way to prevent a stroke is by speaking with your doctor to see if you’re in the ‘high-risk’ category: “Atrial fibrillation and smoking are probably the two highest risk factors for stroke, and then diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, which we call high cholesterol,” he added.
Dr. Attenhoffer also says time is critical when it comes to reducing the long-term impacts of a stroke.
“Call 911. They’ll assess you there on the scene and then they’ll put you in an ambulance and drive you here. But while they’re on the way, they’re already calling us so we’re ready when you get here,” he said.
