How to identify victims of a stroke

[Maduro Mistress]

In all seriousness, this is pretty cool.

You may know this already but a little refresher course won't hurt.


STROKE: Remember the Three Letters Plus the Tongue.

STROKE IDENTIFICATION:

My friend sent this to me and encouraged me to post it and spread the word, I agreed. If everyone can remember something this simple, we could save some folks. Seriously. please read:

It only takes a minute to read this...

A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke victim within three hours he can totally reverse the effects of a stroke . . . totally. He said the trick was having a stroke recognized, diagnosed and then getting the patient medically cared for within three hours, which is tough.

RECOGNIZING A STROKE:

Thank God for the sense to remember the "3" steps.

Read and Learn!

Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to identify. Unfortunately, the lack of awareness spells disaster. The stroke victim may suffer severe brain damage when people nearby fail to recognize the symptoms of a stroke.

Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions:

S *Ask the individual to SMILE.

T *Ask the person to TALK, to SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE. (Coherently) (i.e. . . It is sunny out today)

R *Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS.

NOTE: Another 'sign' of a stroke is this: Ask the person to 'stick' out their tongue . if the tongue is 'crooked', if it goes to one side or the other, that is also an indication of a stroke.

If he or she has trouble with any one of these tasks, call 911 immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.

[john]

Good tip.

Appleton, WI!  Go Pack!

[mike_mike]

I think it is worth mentioning that "mini-strokes" (TIA) exist once you have a "mini-stroke" you're a much greater risk to have a "stroke" (CVA) in the future. That being said, one of the most importasnt things you can ask them is "HAVE YOU HAD A STROKE IN THE PAST?"

You'll want to make sure they can do what you ask them to do with both sides of their body (both hands in their air, etc) becuase often only one side of the body is affected.. cover their eyes to check for pupil dialation to futher check nervous system function.

If you're around people often that you suspect may be at risk of cerebrovascular accidents (CVA) aka stroke, transient ischemic attacks (TIA) aka mini-strokes, heart attack or any other serious medical emergency, it is suggest that you learn how to call 911.. may seem like a stupid statement, but the emergency medical system is kickstarted by YOU and YOUR CALL... so making a correct call may save someone's life.