News

• Can you smile?
• Can you say a simple sentence?
• Do you have weakness on one side of your body?

If you suspect someone has had a stroke ask him or her the above questions. If they cannot smile, have a weakness on one side of their body and cannot speak a simple sentence clearly then phone an ambulance straight away.

It is very important to recognise a stroke as soon as possible to decrease the amount of brain damage sustained. It is even more important nowadays as there is a new treatment called thrombolysis, which is having very good results but it can only be administered in the first three hours after a stroke. No treatment given by the medics can reverse the damage caused to the brain but treatments can prevent further damage being caused.

Remember that a stroke can be suffered by anyone at any age. It is certainly not uncommon for young people in their teens and twenty’s to have a stroke.

Other warning signs can include:

• Sudden numbness of the face, arm, or leg, especially on one side of the body
• Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding speech
• Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes
• Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
• Sudden severe headache with no known cause