CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Every 40 seconds, someone in the United States has a stroke and, on average, an American dies from stroke every four minutes, according to the American Heart Association and the American Stroke Association.
On Wednesday, to mark World Stroke Day, representatives from those associations along with Thomas Health System were at Thomas Memorial Hospital in Kanawha County to talk about the signs of stroke.
Kevin Pauley, communications director for the American Heart Association and the American Stroke Association, said an acronym is an easy way to remember the symptoms. “F.A.S.T. ‘F’ means your face is drooping, ‘A,’ arm weakness, ‘S,’ speech difficulty, ‘T,’ time to call 911,” he said.
Other stroke signs include a sudden severe headache with no known cause, sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination, sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes or sudden confusion or trouble understanding.
Paige Johnson, a spokesperson for Thomas Memorial Hospital, is a five-year stroke survivor.
“I was 32, ten days before my 33rd birthday, when I had my stroke,” she said. “I had two young boys at the time and all I wanted to do was survive and get home and be happy and healthy with my babies.” She said she was lucky that her stroke was not worse.
Pauley said Johnson is proof that stroke does not discriminate.
“Stroke can happen to anybody at any age,” he said, noting that stroke is the leading cause of long-term and preventable disability and the No. 4 cause of death in the U.S.
“I’m a very lucky survivor because there are no repercussions that I have,” Johnson said. “So, I’m back at work and I was back two weeks later. However, there are a lot of people that are having repercussions that are leading lives that they didn’t think they were going to lead.”
A stroke occurs when blood flow to the brain is interrupted.
The American Stroke Association estimates about 87 percent of strokes are classified as ischemic, meaning a clot or mass blocks a blood vessel. Roughly 13 percent of strokes are hemorrhagic strokes which happen when a weakened blood vessel ruptures.
In a transient ischemic attack, also called a “mini stroke” or “warning stroke,” the blockage is temporary. Symptoms are the same as a stroke, but usually last less than five minutes.
More information about stroke and the warning signs is available here.