Don Urges Stroke Prevention Strategies

In a bid to curtail the high rising cases of stroke in the country, a neurologist  professor in the Department of Medicine, College of Health Sciences, University of Port Harcourt, Prof Arthur Onwuchekwa, has advocated moderation in certain food intake, regular sensitization  and media outreach as possible effective strategies to prevent the killer disease.

Onwuchekwa stated this  at the 135th  inaugural  lecture of the College on the theme: Stroke: A Preventive Disaster Waiting to Happen” at the  Ebitimi Banigo Hall,  of the institution recently.

The neurologist who noted that the saying “prevention is cheaper and better than cure” was squarely important  in tackling the menace of rising stroke cases in the country, maintained that  population-based strategies  that would  involve community, education, pointed materials, lectures sensitization  awareness programmes, and -visual bill board and television programmes as well as radio  jingles remained concrete  ways of reaching out to the vulnerable  segments of the nation’s populace.

Quoting World Health Organisation (WHO), Onwuchkwa defined  stroke as  rapidly developing clinical  signs of focal disturbance of the cerebral  function  lasting more than 24 hours with no apparent  cause other than vascular origin. This results  when blood flow to the brain is abruptly interrupted  leading to the demise of cells”.

According to him, “this  manifests as inability to move  on one part of the body, problems of understanding, feeling like the world is spinning or loss of vision to one or both eyes. This is usually sudden in outset within seconds  and minutes.

He noted that “if the symptoms  last less than 24 hours and resolves  outrightly with no residual  deficit, it is called “Translent Ischaemic Attack (TIA) or Mini stroke”.

Noting  that stroke symptoms normally  commence abruptly within seconds to minutes, the Professor  said the symptoms rely on the  area of  brain affected as well as function of that area,  the more  extensive area affected, the more functions are likely to be lost.

The Don  stated that the commonest way to recognize stroke is by the means of the facial deviation, Arm weakness, slurred speech  and Time in the brain (FAST).

“Every minute in which a large vessel  Ischaemic stroke  is untreated,  the average patient  loses about 1.9 neurons,  13.8 billion  synapses. Each  hour in which treatment fails to occur,  the brain  loses as  many  neurons as it does in almost about 3.6 years of normal  aging, Onwuchekwa averred.

He listed high blood pressure,  diabetes mellintis, high blood cholesterol, excessive alcohol intake, obesity, smoking, lack of physical activity among others as major risk factors  that predispose people to stroke.

While stating that stroke was classified  into two   categories  of  Ischaemic,  which  is  called cerebral  infration, caused by interruption  of blood supply to the brain and Haemorrhagic,  which  results  from bleeding  into the  brain tissue due to rupture of blood  vessels, a condition called intra-cerebral  Haemorrhagic (ICH), and reiterated the significance  of team  work  among  health  workers  to ensure effective treatment.

Onwuchekwa said “stroke is the new face of chronic non-communicable  disease in sub -Saharan Africa, a forerunner, of health transition  in the developing countries and a preventable disaster waiting  to occur”. He therefore called on policy-makers in health, education, transport, finance, power,  agriculture and information acting in concert to deal with the problem of stroke.

“Stroke education should  target prospective  patients such as hypertensive, diabetics, sicklers, the  aged including care givers, adding that the campaign  should be carried to tertiary,  secondary and primary schools including  churches and  markets.

The Don who called for improved  healthcare  delivery system that  would  lay strong emphasis on primary healthcare also stressed the need for the rehabilitation of health facilities  for physiotherapy, occupational and speech therapy to cater for the needs of those who eventually comedown  with stroke.

Lady Godknows Ogbulu