RECOGNISING A STROKE
During a BBQ a friend stumbled and took
a little fall - she assured everyone that she was fine (they offered
to call an ambulance) and had just tripped over a brick because
of her new shoes. They got her cleaned up and got her a new plate
of food. While she appeared a bit shaken up, Ingrid went about
enjoying herself the rest of the evening.
Ingrid's husband called later telling
everyone that his wife had been taken to the hospital - (at 6:00pm,
Ingrid passed away.) She had suffered a stroke at the BBQ - had
they known how to identify the signs of a stroke perhaps Ingrid
would be with us today.
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 getting a stroke recognised,
diagnosed and getting to the patient within 3 hours which is tough.
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 brain damage when people
nearby fail to recognise the symptoms of a stroke. Now doctors
say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three Simple
questions:
1. Ask the individual to SMILE
2. Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS
3. Ask the person to SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE
(Coherently) it is very sunny out today
If he or she has trouble with any of
these tasks, call the emergency number immediately and describe
the symptoms to the operator.
After discovering that a group of non-medical
volunteers could identify facial weakness, arm weakness and speech
problems, researchers urged the general public to learn the three
questions. They presented their conclusions at the American Stroke
Association's annual meeting last February.
Widespread use of this test could result
in prompt diagnosis and treatment of the stroke and prevent brain
damage. A cardiologist says if everyone who gets this e-mail sends
it to 10 people; you can bet that at least one life will be saved.
David Heard
Sportability
Email: info@sportability.org
Phone: 0208-959-0089 (USA only)
Web: http://www.sportability.org
