Chennai  : In our continued effort towards reaching greater heights in medical excellence, Fortis Malar Hospital Chennai today opens a dedicated “The Fortis Stroke Centre” to perform path-breaking procedures to treat patients suffering from acute ischemic stroke. The centre was inaugurated by Dr. Dheeraj Khurana, Additional Professor, Department of Neurology, PGIMER, Chandigarh in the presence of Dr. Dinesh Nayak, Epileptologist, HOD- Dept. of Neurology.

This unit at Fortis Malar Hospital comes with an ideal combination of people, processes and technology. Under the expertise of acknowledged and experienced neurologists, this state-of-the-art centre offers 24×7 diagnosis and treatment to provide the best care to ensure quick treatment and speedy recovery of patients. The primary objective of Strike Out Stroke (SOS 15) is to drastically cut down the time taken to diagnose the stroke and start lifesaving treatment. The unit is accredited by American Stroke Association.

According to Medlndia, stroke is the third most common cause of death, after cancer and ischemic heart disease. It is also the most leading cause for physical and mental disability worldwide. Stroke patients’ lives can be saved by recognizing the symptoms quickly and providing proper medical care to the patients within 4½ hrs. In developing nations like India and China, the average age of stroke victims is at least 10 years lesser when compared to their counterparts in developed nations. Also, hypertension increases chances of stroke by 30-50% and so does diabetes mellitus, which makes patients 2-3 times more prone to stroke.

“While 2/3rd of stroke victims are above 60 years old, 1/5th of the victims die within a month of its occurrence. At least half the survivors are left physically deformed. It is believed that an untreated patient loses approximately 1.9 million neurons every minute in the ischaemic area after the onset of stroke. Our aim, through this programme, is to cut down on the time it takes to diagnose stroke and start lifesaving clot busting drugs as soon as possible, and also improve stroke outcomes and the different aspects of care”, said Dr. Sathish Kumar, Consultant Stroke Specialist.

“Stroke, as a phenomenon is as dangerous as cardiac arrest. It is often ignored or taken lightly unlike cardiac arrest. This is because most of the stroke attacks do not involve pain. The general symptoms would be numbness or weakness in any part of the body, headache, slurred speech, trouble with seeing, in one or both eyes and loss of balance or coordination. Timely intervention is one of the most important requisite for effective treatment” said Dr. Dinesh Nayak, Epileptologist, HOD- Dept. of Neurology.

.As per the data available, the estimated age-adjusted prevalence rate for stroke ranges between 84/100,000 and 262/100,000 in rural and between 334/100,000 and 424/100,000 in urban areas. The incidence rate is 119-145/100,000 based on the recent population based studies. There is also a wide variation in case fatality rates with the highest being 42% in Kolkata.

Lack of physical activities, lifestyle change, smoking, drinking, high blood pressure and obesity are some of the major causes of stroke. The fact that a stroke can occur without pain & often goes undiagnosed is not known to many. Early recognition and diagnosis of stroke can help save life and limit disability. Specifically the Face Arm Speech and Time (FAST) test is a lay approach to diagnose stroke and is widely used to raise awareness about early recognition of stroke among the public. At the very first symptom of a stroke, the patient should be rushed to a hospital with a CT scan facility.

In terms of stroke recovery, generally about 10% of stroke survivors recover almost completely; 25% recover with minor impairments; 40% experience moderate to serve impairments requiring special care; and 10% require care in a nursing home or other long-term care facility.