[MUSIC PLAYING] KERI JOHNSON: True or false? Most strokes happen to the elderly. This is true. However, recent data released in 2020 indicates that about 10% to 15% of strokes occur in young people or those aged 18 to 50 years old. This population tends to have a broader or more diverse list of stroke mechanisms, or the thing that caused the stroke to occur, although it has been noted that traditional risk factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, obesity, and tobacco use are increasing in this population and certainly contribute to that percentage. 

Is it possible to have a stroke without knowing it? It is possible, yes. When someone undergoes a head or brain MRI for any reason, whether that be a headache, cognitive changes, head trauma, you name it, we often find things that we're not looking for, including things like incidental infarcts or what may be better known as a silent stroke. 

Truth be told, these silent strokes are often not so silent and result in symptoms that may be atypical for a stroke or may be easily attributable to something else, such as an injury or an illness. When these silent strokes are identified on imaging, however, it is important for it to be evaluated and addressed by your primary care provider and a neurologist in order to evaluate your stroke risk factors and prevent another stroke event from occurring in the future, or at least reduce your risk. 

If my grandmother has had a stroke, am I more likely to have one too? Possibly, yes. It really all depends on your grandmother's stroke mechanism or what caused her stroke to occur. Members of the same family may have a genetic tendency for common stroke risk factors such as a predisposition to develop high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or diabetes. 

There's also common lifestyle and dietary trends among family members, particularly if you live in the same area, which may also contribute to your stroke risk as well. What I should really emphasize here is the importance of talking to your family members about their health history, namely your parents, your grandparents, and your siblings, so you can be aware of conditions that may affect you later in life and ways that you can work to prevent them from occurring in the first place. 

How can I tell if someone is having a stroke? A helpful acronym to assist in identifying stroke symptoms is BE FAST. B stands for balance, so a sudden change in balance or coordination. E stands for eyes. A sudden change in vision, such as blurry vision, double vision, or a loss in vision. 

F stands for face. Sudden onset of drooping of one side of the face or even numbness on one side of the face. A is for arm. Weakness or numbness that develops suddenly in one arm, or this could also affect one leg. Speech, a sudden onset or change in speech production such as slurred speech, difficulty finding the right word, or an inability to speak. 

And T is for time. If a person is exhibiting any of these symptoms, they should seek medical attention immediately. And if possible, also note the time that they were last known well or the time that they did not have these symptoms. We have a saying that time is brain. So the faster a person can be evaluated by a medical professional, the sooner we are able to intervene and possibly make a difference in someone's stroke recovery. 

Can animals sense that a person is having a stroke? As far as I'm aware, there's been no research that indicates that animals such as dogs can identify when a person is about to have a stroke. The thing about strokes is that they happen suddenly. We equate them to a lightning strike. Someone can go from feeling completely fine to all of a sudden, they can develop facial droop and arm weakness with a snap of a finger. This is why we really emphasize the importance of preventative care. 

How long does it take to recover from a stroke? That answer is really unique to each individual patient. How would a stroke affects each individual patient is very different. Some folks may leave the hospital completely recovered, while some may take years months to even years to fully recover. Stroke recovery is thought to be on a continuum and involves many different people, including speech therapy, occupational therapy, and physical therapy, as well as many different medical providers such as neurologists, hematologists, and of course, your primary care provider.