By Maris Lambie
Bengal News West Reporter
Bengal News West Reporter
A few years
a go when Kelly Asher’s brother drove home from work feeling sick the last
thing he thought he was experiencing was a stroke.
It started
with a severe sudden headache and was followed with nausea, which is a little
different than the usual stroke symptoms.
“He was
actually able to drive himself home. When he got home he seemed to be a little
bit confused, so his wife took him to the hospital and he had had a stroke.”
Asher, community coalition coordinator at the Erie County Health Department,
said.
Asher’s
brother has made a full recovery since then. He is one of the hundreds of
thousands who had experienced a stroke that year.
While the
risk of stroke is something people should be concerned with year round, this
May for National Stroke Awareness month local organizations and medical officials
are concerned with raising a greater awareness.
Each year
about 795,000 people experience a stroke. Nationally stroke is the fifth leading cause
of death in the United States. Locally, in Western New York, stroke is the
third leading cause of death and is the number one cause of disability. Experts believe the incidence is higher in urban
areas.
“The rates
differ all across the Buffalo region but are more concentrated in the city and
areas with a higher population of color,” Marc Natale, executive director of the
Buffalo and Rochester region of the American Heart Association, said.
Both Asher
and Natale claim the rates in the area vary by neighborhood due to environmental
and socioeconomic factors. In poorer urban areas there is an abundance of
convenience stores with a lack of fresh produce, often leading to a greater
consumption of processed foods, which can increase blood pressure and
cholesterol and lead to higher obesity rates.
Another
factor can be healthcare.
“If you
don’t have good coverage you might not have access to a good physician. And if
you have low income you might not have health insurance or could have trouble
with transportation to get to a doctor,” Andrew Case, professor from the D'Youville
College Physician Assistant program.
While the American
Heart Association reports death rates of stroke have dropped by 20 percent in
the African-American population and by 17 percent in the Hispanic population,
African Americans are still dying 13 years earlier and Hispanics 10 years
earlier due to stroke. African Americans are also more likely to experience a
stroke earlier in life.
“Two in
three African Americans have high blood pressure, which is one of the key contributing
factors to strokes,” Natale said.
Other risk
factors include obesity, smoking, high cholesterol, diabetes, and poor diet
with little physical activity. A less
common risk factor is untreated atrial fibrillation, which is when someone has
an irregular heartbeat.
The rates
of stroke are significantly reduced when people eat a healthy diet, exercise
for at least 90 minutes a week, maintain a low blood pressure and cholesterol
and refrain from smoking.
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| Deborah Steck, right, with marketing coordinator Sarah McQuade |
Experts all
agree that time is crucial. If someone is experiencing any of these symptoms it
is important to call 911 right away, even if the symptoms have stopped. Experts
emphasize that stroke patients should go to the hospital within the first three
hours
“Most
people when surveyed claimed if they experienced any of these symptoms they
would drink water then take a nap,” Deborah Steck, stroke coordinator at Buffalo
General Medical Center said. “Or people might call a doctor and then wait for a
call back. In some cases some may think that was the same as calling 911.
Others might just call a family member. But you need to call 911 first.”
