Almost 2 million brain cells die each minute a stroke goes untreated. It is important to recognize the signs of a stroke in order to seek immediate emergency care. If your stroke is caused by a clot, you may benefit from a medication that breaks up the clot and reduces the long-term disability associated with stroke. But you have only three hours from the onset of your symptoms to receive the clot-buster.
Call 911 should you experience:
- Sudden numbness, weakness or paralysis of the face, arm or leg, usually on one side of the body.
- Sudden confusion or trouble speaking or understanding speech. For instance, slurred speech or speaking gibberish.
- Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes. Some people become blind in one half of their visual field.
- Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
- Sudden, severe or unusual headache with no known cause
You don’t need to experience all the symptoms to suspect a stroke. Any one symptom can be an indicator of a stroke. Call 911.
For more information, read Strokes still largely misunderstood
