Drive launched to boost stroke awareness

The education effort will start this year in a string of states known as the "Stroke Belt."

By Jennifer Leopoldt, amednews correspondent. Aug. 11, 2003.

Patients want information on their stroke risks, but many primary care physicians aren't providing it, according to the National Stroke Assn.

The group has launched a five-year education campaign, "Ask Your Doctor," aimed at sparking patient-physician dialogue on stroke.

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Primary care physicians are crucial in stroke-prevention efforts because their regular contact with patients makes it easier to detect and discuss the risks, said David Willis, MD, a family physician in Ocala, Fla. "The whole goal is that we can do something so the patient doesn't have a stroke, or teach them to prevent a stroke so that, in the long run, their outcome will be better."

A survey by the stroke association showed that although 87% of patients would like to hear about stroke risk and prevention from their primary care physician, more than 30% said they do not receive any stroke education or screening at the doctor's office.

About 750,000 people experience stroke per year, but 80% of strokes can be prevented, said Kay Wan, spokeswoman for the National Stroke Assn.

Doctors should discuss with patients both risks they can do something about, such as hypertension, diabetes and weight, and uncontrollable risks, such as age and race, the stroke association said.

80% of strokes can be prevented.

Physicians also can encourage healthy lifestyle choices, such as eating a low-salt, low-fat diet and not smoking.

"There's no reason to become nihilistic, simply assuming stroke is inevitable as a consequence of old age and it's not worth the patient's effort and the physician's effort to try to prevent it," said Creed Pettigrew, MD, MPH, a professor of neurology and director of the stroke program at the University of Kentucky, Lexington.

Patients can help themselves by learning to recognize physical signs of a stroke and to seek immediate treatment for sudden numbness on one side of the body, loss of balance, severe headache or confusion.

Some of the symptoms of stroke are similar to heart attack, and the education campaign could help patients differentiate and know when to seek help for stroke, said Kevin Pearce, MD, a family physician in the Dept. of Family Practice and Community Medicine at the University of Kentucky.

"Patients get more media attention to heart attack and are more aware of signs of heart attack than they are of stroke," said Dr. Pearce, who is the campaign's chair in Kentucky.

The stroke awareness drive kicks off this year in the Stroke Belt, mostly southeastern states with a higher stroke mortality rate than elsewhere in the United States. The states are: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

The program also is being introduced in Washington, D.C. Then the association will focus on southwestern states and move across the United States.

Dr. Willis, who is the campaign's chair for Florida, said he expects the effort's impact to be twofold. "It's a reminder to physicians to broach the subject with patients. The greater focus is getting the public to be aware of what their risk factors might be for a stroke so they can help initiate conversation with the physician."

The stroke association is urging physicians to keep the education campaign materials in their waiting rooms. The group is promoting its effort through print ads and television public service announcements.