10 things you should know about stroke
- Every five minutes someone in the UK has a stroke.
- A stroke is a brain attack. A stroke happens due to a clot or bleed in the brain, which causes brain cells to die.
- The signs of a stroke are:
These signs may only last a few hours (called a Transient Ischaemic Attack – TIA) but must not be ignored.
- Facial weakness
- Arm or leg weakness
- Speech problems
- A loss to half of the visual field
- A stroke is an emergency. If you see the signs of a stroke act FAST and call 999. Early treatment saves lives and increases the chance of making a better recovery.
- Stroke is the third biggest killer and the leading cause of severe disability in the UK.
- Almost one in four men and one in five women aged 45 can expect to have a stroke if they live to 85.
- More than three times as many women die from stroke than breast cancer in the UK.
- Unacceptable inadequacies in stroke care and research exist. For every £50 spent on cancer research and £20 on heart disease research, only £1 is spent on stroke research.
- Eating healthily, taking more exercise, not smoking and ensuring blood pressure is normal, can all help to prevent stroke.
- The Stroke Association is the only national charity solely concerned with helping everyone affected by stroke. We are working to create a world where there are fewer strokes and all those touched by stroke get the help they need.
