When stroke strikes

MANILA, Philippines – Strokes kill about five million people each year and is considered as the second leading cause of death worldwide. At least 15 million patients have non-fatal strokes annually, and about a third is significantly disabled as a consequence. In the Philippines, it is one of the leading causes of death together with other vascular diseases. 

A stroke is similar to a heart attack. It is caused by the malfunction or “death” of a part of the brain when there is a lack of blood supply to that certain part due to a clot or a ruptured vessel.

When stroke hits a patient, time lost is considered brain lost. The faster he gets help and able to receive medical intervention, the greater the chance for the patient to recover from stroke.

Equally important is for one to recognize the warning signs of stroke. Everyone is advised to be conscious of the following signs: sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg especially on one side of the body; confusion; having trouble in speaking and understanding, seeing with one or both eyes, and walking; dizziness, loss of balance or coordination; and severe headache with no known cause.

But before a stroke happens, one needs to understand its risk factors so that medical intervention is administered early and aggressively. The non-modifiable risk factors for stroke include age, sex, family history, race and ethnicity — factors that cannot be controlled.

However, there are modifiable risk factors for stroke which when eliminated or controlled reduce the risk of stroke significantly. These are hypertension, cardiac disease (particularly atrial fibrillation), diabetes, hyperlipidaemia or elevated cholesterol, cigarette smoking, alcohol abuse, physical inactivity, asymptomatic carotid stenosis, and transient ischemic attack. 

There is a growing concern that because of the lifestyle and diet of Asians, particularly Filipinos, cholesterol levels are rising, resulting in an increasing risk for stroke (brain attack). Recently, published in the Journal of Epidemiology, the Asia-Pacific Cohort Studies Collaboration reported a 25-percent increased risk of fatal or non-fatal ischaemic stroke in the region, associated with increasing total cholesterol, as the result of assessing outcomes from 29 study groups across the region. 

The same report confirmed that cholesterol is rising substantially in Asia.

As use of the latest main group of drugs known as the “statin” class indicated to reduce cholesterol continues to grow around the region, researchers are also discovering new ways for these drugs to help prevent other dangers caused by high cholesterol, including stroke, in addition to heart attacks.

Atorvastatin, a medicine from research-based pharmaceutical company Pfizer, has also been proven effective among diabetic patients in preventing the occurrence of non-hemorrhagic strokes. 

The Collaborative Atorvastatin Diabetes Study (CARDS) showed that type 2 diabetic patients given atorvastatin 10 mg daily reduced their risk of developing non-hemorrhagic stroke by a significant 50 percent.