(Fairfax, VA, Tuesday, March 15, 2022) – Every 40 seconds, someone in the United States has a stroke. Nearly two million brain cells die each minute a stroke goes untreated. Stroke is the fifth most common cause of death in America, and the leading cause of adult disability. The great news is recent policy changes in Ohio now make it easier for people to survive and thrive after a stroke. Thousands of lives could be saved every year in the state, but that will only happen if people pick up the phone and call 911. Ohioans need to know how to act fast, so they can help themselves, or their loved ones survive stroke.

• Stroke was the fifth leading cause of death in Ohio in 2019. Stroke mortality rates were nearly 10% higher than the national average in 2017.
• Ohio is one of a handful of states working to make sure patients get the best care thanks to a new law. But if Ohioans don’t know the signs of stroke or what to do, lives cannot be saved.
• Ohioans must know the signs of stroke so they can immediately call for help.
  • FAST- Facial drooping, Arm weakness, Speech difficulties, Time to call EMS.

Brain Awareness Week is March 14-20, and stroke is the leading cause of brain-related deaths in the U.S. The longer the brain goes without blood supply and oxygen, the higher likelihood of disability. That’s why calling 911 and getting the proper care as soon as possible is critical to survival.

• Ohioans must know the signs of stroke so they can immediately call for help.
  • FAST- Facial drooping, Arm weakness, Speech difficulties, Time to call EMS.

Once EMS is called, emergency medical technicians often take stroke patients to the nearest hospital. But the closest facility, might not have the expertise needed to treat the most dangerous type of stroke.

• This is why patients having a severe stroke, should immediately go to a Level 1 Stroke Center. The faster a stroke patient can get help, the more likely they are to live.

Like in cases of traumatic injury, where patients are assessed in the field, and the critically injured are transported to Level 1 trauma centers, the Get Ahead of Stroke Campaign is working to ensure that patients with severe stroke are taken to a Level 1 stroke center.

• Here, a specially-trained care team can perform a lifesaving procedure called mechanical thrombectomy to safely and quickly restore blood flow to the brain.

In the 2021, Get Ahead of Stroke worked with Ohio policymakers to improve the triage and transport protocols for severe stroke patients. Governor Mike DeWine signed SB 21 into law on June 22, 2021.

• Under the new law, the State Board of Emergency Medical, Fire and Transportation Services must work with stakeholders to develop guidelines for the assessment, triage and transport of stroke patients to hospitals by emergency medical service personnel.

So you call 911, what’s next? Dr Peter Rasmussen will speak on the lifesaving neuroendovascular stroke surgery “thrombectomy”. It’s quick, easy, and effective. In fact, for every 10 minutes saved in getting to a mechanical thrombectomy, patients experienced an additional month of life free from disability.

Get Ahead of Stroke is a national public education and advocacy campaign designed to improve systems of care for stroke patients. Founded in 2016 by the Society of NeuroInterventional Surgery (SNIS), today the campaign is supported by a coalition of organizations with the goal of securing the best possible outcomes for stroke patients by driving policy change and public awareness nationwide.