FAST Technique for stroke
18 February 2009
You be aware of the recent campaign about the F.A.S.T technique. There have been television, radio and print advertisments all aimed at helping the public to spot the signs of a stroke as early as possible.
*The following information has been take from the NHS Choices website:
'Stroke claims 67,000 lives a year and is the leading cause of disability. Thousands of deaths and cases of disability could be avoided if people could spot the symptoms and seek immediate treatment.
Stroke is caused by a disruption of the blood supply to the brain. There are two main types of stroke:
Ischaemic: the most common form of stroke, caused by a blood clot which starves part of the brain of oxygen leading to the death of brain cells.
Haemorrhagic: caused by a bursting of blood vessels producing bleeding, which causes damage.
The FAST test
The Face-Arm-Speech-Time (FAST) test lists the main symptoms to look out for:
Face: Has the person's face fallen on one side? Can the person smile? Has their mouth or eye drooped?
Arms: Can the person raise both arms and keep them there?
Speech: Is their speech slurred?
Time: Time to call 999 if you see one or more of these signs.
“FAST will pick up 90% of strokes,” says Dr Tony Rudd, stroke programme director at the Royal College of Physicians’ Clinical Effectiveness and Evaluation Unit.
“If people have one or more of these symptoms they should call 999.”
Read more on the NHS Choices website
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