How to Tell when Someone is Having a Stroke

Okay, I know most of my articles are about health and there are two reasons for this.

1. I took a health class last semester and learned so much.

2. I want to share what I learned.

My teacher gave us various handouts and one of them was on how to identify a stroke. I want to share this, because you never know you might be at the right place, at the right time and save a life.

Stroke - A stroke happens when the blood supply to the brain is interrupted. This can also led to the reduction of supply of glucose and oxygen in the affected area and it can eliminate neuronal function. This also instigates an ischemic cascade meaning the cause of neurons dieing or being seriously damaged

It is the 3rd leading cause of death and adult disability amongst the developed countries - United States, and European countries. What is more surprising is that something so serious is extremely easy to act upon and to actually save a life from being ruined.

Although at times it might be difficult to recognize a person who is undergoing a stroke (because their facial expression just seem confused or lost), once a bystander recognize that some one might be having an attack. There are steps a bystander can take in order to identify and act on a person having a stroke.

Just remember these three letters STR

The S stands for the first step a person can take when distinguishing a stroke - Ask the

Individual to Smile.

The Trepresents the second step- Ask the person to Talk or say a simple sentence (Coherently) (i.e. .....it is sunny out today)

The R is the final step a bystander can take - Ask the person under a stroke attach to Raise both arms

Another faster step a person can take is to ask the person under an attack to stick his or her tongue out. If the tongue is crooked, in other terms if his or her tongue falls to one side of the mouth or the other this means that there is a possibility that the person is experiencing a stroke.

If the person has trouble or fails with any of these actions, meaning it is not necessary to go though all the steps, failure in even one of these action is enough to consider a stoke taking place, calling 911 promptly is the best think to do. It is also very vital to explain the symptoms to the dispatchers.

Research shows that if a stroke victim is checked up on in the first 3 hours, doctors can reverse the whole effect a stroke can have. However every minute is crucial because a stroke involves the blocking of blood flow to the brain - this can result in complete paralysis on one side of the body. In turn it is best to get the patient to the hospital in the first 60 minutes - which is a lot of time if everything is done properly and fast.