Watch for stroke warning signs
Burlington, Vermont – May 16, 2011
Stroke is the number three killer in the country and health officials in Chittenden Country hope to change that.
They held a free stroke screening at the Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf in Burlington. About 40 people turned out to have their blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar checked. Those are all potential warning signs. Doctors say it’s important to know those numbers because you could feel perfectly fine, but still have high blood pressure and that could put you at a high risk of having a stroke.
“It turns out that what you do everyday does make a difference to your body and to your health and so what we try to do when we’re screening is just get people, number one get people to recognize personally what their risk factors are to decrease their risk of having a stroke. And also we try to educate them about what the signs, symptoms of a stroke are,” ) said Dr. Mark Gorman, a Neurologist at Fletcher Allen.
Those warning signs include sudden numbness or weakness — particularly on one side of your face or body, confusion or trouble speaking, dizziness, headache, and sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes. If you experience any of those symptoms, doctors say get to a hospital immediately because strokes are treatable if caught early.
Bridget Barry Caswell – WCAX News
