Time matters when a stroke is suspected.
A stroke is when blood flow to part of the brain is blocked, or a blood vessel bursts.
Aspirus Neurosurgeon Fawzi Hindi talked about some of the symptoms to watch for.
“One side numbness, one side weakness, that’s a big stroke sign,” said Dr. Hindi.“Another one is language or speech problems, where you can't understand others and others can't understand you. That's another major one. And then another major one is vision problems where you suddenly can't see anything on one side of your visual world”.
Getting help quickly is key.
“As we say in neurology, time is brain,” said Dr. Hindi. “The sooner you fix the problem, the sooner you fix the stroke, the more brain you save. So as soon as you see someone with those symptoms, your number one priority is to get medical attention”.
Factors that can increase your risk for a stroke include smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes.
Those who suffer from atrial fibrillation also are at higher risk for strokes.
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