> STROKE IDENTIFICATION:
>
> During a BBQ, a friend stumbled and took a little fall - she
assured
> everyone that she was fine (they offered to call paramedics) and
> 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. Some don't die. They end up in a helpless, hopeless
condition
> instead.
>
> It only takes a minute to read this...
>
> A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke victim within 3
> hours he can totally reverse the effects of a
stroke...totally! y.
> He said the trick was getting a stroke recognized, diagnosed, and
> then getting the patient medically cared for within 3 hours,
which
> is tough.
>
> RECOGNIZING A STROKE
>
> to remember the "3" steps, STR . 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 9-1-1
> immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.
>
> 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.
>
>
> Robin Lamar
>
>
>
> So I would not be too hard on yourselves. This is good info to
know and
> to pass along, but getting Ingrid to a hospital sooner may have
made all
> the difference, but maybe not.
>
> Hope to see you again soon,
>
> Dave Leonard, MD
I'm not putting down this advice about recognizing strokes, or your
experience or career, Dave...but I do want to say a little something
about emails that get sent around a lot such as this one.
Generally, this good advice, and if everyone did follow it, there would
certainly be at least few more lives or futures saved,
BUT (and here's the but), the email, as being sent around (and as you
see it below) is not entirely accurate. The first three steps are good,
but the bit about the tongue is not a good indicator (for example, my
tongue sticks out crooked all the time...and how crooked is crooked?).
The ASA is also hesitant about endorsing these steps over their own
normal 5 warning signs to identifying a stroke victim because this study
was on too small a group of people.
The ASA's warning signs:
The warning signs of a stroke are:
* Sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm, or leg, especially
on one side of the body.
* Sudden confusion, trouble speaking, or understanding.
* Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes.
* Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or
coordination.
* Sudden, severe headache with no known cause.
And as always, the best advice is if you suspect a stroke, but are not
sure, then call 911 anyway.
As in all emails that ask to send it on to "to 10 people" there is a
high risk that someone has added something of their own that may not be
accurate, or may even be hazardous.
That appears to be the case here, in a minor sense.
Read more about this particular email here:
www.snopes.com/medical/disease/stroke.asp
It also includes the ASA recommended procedure, and some other emails to
be wary of regarding stroke.
Harley Dixon
My original post somehow got truncated to just the last paragraph. My
point is that everyone should be aware of the signs and symptoms of
stroke but that cure is not assured by rapid transport to the hospital.
I did not want the relatives and friends to feel as though it was
somehow their fault, or that everything would clearly be OK if only she
had gotten to the hospital.
There are many causes of stroke, and many possible outcomes with varying
responses to treatment.
There are also many ways to do this history and physical exam, requiring
various levels of expertise. The 'STR' mnemonic you sent is a great
start but of course is by no means complete... the 'ASA'
recommendations are a slightly more in depth approach but are not as
easy to remember and are of course very far from complete. Still better
are exams by more highly trained personnel, up to a complete neuro-psych
exam over the course of several hours followed by non-invasive and
invasive radiology.
--
David Leonard, MD
Turbo Rotary RV-6 N4VY
My websites at:
http://members.aol.com/_ht_a/rotaryroster/index.html
http://members.aol.com/_ht_a/vp4skydoc/index.html
http://leonardiniraq.blogspot.com
Sorry Dave probably my fault. Been over loaded lately.
This is much better and more likely to achieve verbatim
as your signature file always appears at the bottom of
the message whether you comment above the old message or
below the old message. In this case you commented below
which is good so then I don't have to move it down.
The process of moving it down is error prone.
I prefer it below the old message. In chronological order.
Thanks This goes for everybody.
Paul Lamar
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Robin,
Thanks for the timely reminder about strokes and taking immediate
action. Better safe than sorry. Also, I hope you are keeping your
house repair man, the one who wears the tight blue body suit with
the Red "S" on his chest, healthy and in for regular checkups. We
need him to keep the rotary engine dialog going for a long time.
Joel
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