But we have fucking failures of stroke associations instead doing nothing to solve ANY of the problems in stroke. And we have hospitals professing how great they are at stroke because they are following Get With the Guideline or Joint Commission standards on stroke. Neither of which measures results, just whether they are following processes. You can follow processes 100% and the patient dies, good for the doctor, not so good for the patients. You can't get better at anything unless you measure it. You don't measure processes you measure results.
https://telanganatoday.com/act-fast-when-stroke-strikes
Hyderabad: Cases of brain stroke are one of the leading causes of death and disability in India and are almost equal to coronary artery diseases or heart ailments. And yet, there are studies indicating that awareness on strokes is far less among the population when compared to cardiovascular ailments.
The average age of the onset of strokes among the Indian population is lower than those among the western population. This means that by the age of 63, almost every Indian has a chance of suffering a stroke while in the west, that age is around 68 years.
If we look at a younger demographic in India, a 2016 study by researchers of All India Institute of Medical Studies (AIIMS) says that of the 2,634 patients treated due to brain strokes, as many as 440 patients, which means 17 per cent of patients, were between 18 years and 45 years of age. Shockingly, close to 84 per cent in the study were males, indicating that men are more prone to strokes.
By and large, almost all neurologists agree that in India, people have difficulty identifying symptoms of a brain stroke. There is also a low perception of threat from brain strokes, which invariably leads to delayed treatment or arrival of the patient to the hospital.
Why do we have a higher chance of getting a stroke?
The reason many believe for strokes being on par with cardiovascular ailments is the inadequate control or the inability of the Indian population to control the risk factors. The top components of metabolic syndrome, which are diabetes and hypertension and external factors like smoking, alcohol abuse and heart ailments, continue to remain the top risk factors that the Indian population grapple with to control brain strokes.
In addition to the risk factors, there is also the issue of availability of stroke-specific treatment in hospitals. There are very few hospitals in Hyderabad and elsewhere that are stroke-ready, which means that they have a neurologist and a specially equipped laboratory to provide immediate emergency care to stroke victims.
Be stroke-ready: Neurologist
Regarded as a senior neurologist and a researcher in Hyderabad, Dr Jaydeep Roy Choudhari while interacting with Telangana Today, said that like heart patients, it was vital for persons suffering from brain stroke to be brought to a ‘stroke-ready’ hospital immediately.
What should one do during a stroke?
Basically, stroke patients need to be rushed to a stroke-ready hospital. It’s equally important for family members to be aware about the existence of the nearest stroke-ready centre. Such centres are usually equipped with CT scan, neurologist, intensivist and trained personnel who can immediately administer the patients with thrombolytic therapy which is vital to save the lives of the stroke victims.
What to do till an ambulance arrives?
On their part, persons close to patients who are undergoing stroke need to lay them down on one side and should never try to force-feed them. If the person is wearing some sort of tight clothing, then loosen it immediately. Keep a regular pillow under the head of the patient and wait for assistance.
Can stroke victims be completely treated?
Stroke victims can be treated and patients with disabilities too can be treated over a period of time. In the first phase, the patient’s life has to be saved immediately after suffering from a stroke. The second phase is a long-term rehab phase when the patients are trained to regain their disability.
What is thrombolytic therapy?
Strokes happen due to clots in the brain, which prevent the free flow of blood to the brain, causing strokes. There are sophisticated drugs that when administered in the right time, have the ability to completely dissolve the clots and save lives. Patients need to be brought at the earliest i.e. within 4 to 5 hours. The longer one waits, the harder is the recovery.
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