Putting Your Health First Podcast: Learn What to Do if You Spot Signs of a Stroke and Ways to Reduce Your Risk

By  //  June 7, 2023

Stroke is a top-five leading killer of Americans

Health First’s Dr. Fawad Shaheen says his specialty – reversing stroke – must be better understood. On the Putting Your Health First podcast, the Interventional Neuroradiologist says the symptoms of stroke can land just about anywhere on the body. Find “Putting Your Health First” wherever you listen to podcasts or visit HF.org/podcast.

Health First’s Dr. Fawad Shaheen says his specialty – reversing stroke – must be better understood. On the Putting Your Health First podcast, the Interventional Neuroradiologist says the symptoms of stroke can land just about anywhere on the body. Find “Putting Your Health First” wherever you listen to podcasts or visit HF.org/podcast.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN to Dr. Fawad Shaheen’s podcast that explains stroke – what it is exactly and what to watch for.

BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA — Stroke is a top-five leading killer of Americans, tucked between accidents (of all kinds) and respiratory diseases, and Health First Interventional Neuroradiologist Fawad Shaheen, MD, says there has been a lot of misconceptions around the very word “stroke.”

Dr. Shaheen hopped on the podcast Putting Your Health First to discuss what it is, and to point out that the data show older Americans (65 and up) are facing less stroke risk and suffering less debilitating outcomes – but only older Americans.

Like any tissue, the brain is constantly fed oxygen-rich blood carrying critical nutrients, such as glucose.

“The brain is an organ that requires a lot of energy – 20% of all of the energy the body has at rest,” he said. “Any time there’s an organ that requires energy, it is very crucial that that energy requirement is met, uninterrupted.”

In a stroke, one of two things happens. This oxygen- and nutrient-rich blood is stopped by a clot in the vessel (ischemia), or the vessel itself hemorrhages. In either case, time is critical.

Medical therapies have evolved to be pretty effective at treating stroke if delivered right away. One, thrombectomy, involves threading a microcatheter up an artery into the affected area of the brain and mechanically extracting the clot. Dr. Shaheen performs this procedure at Health First’s Holmes Regional Medical, the area’s only Joint Commission-certified Thrombectomy Center.

A thrombectomy is a life-saving procedure, but it’s also incredibly restorative.

“When we ask people, ‘Are you more afraid of death or disability?’ A lot of people fear disability more. And because stroke is so linked to disability, there is this enigmatic fear around it.”

DR. FAWAD SHAHEEN points to the differences in brain perfusion between a brain suffering an ischemic stroke, at right, and one that has received a tissue-saving thrombectomy, left. (Health First images)

Risk factors for stroke

One of the strongest predictors of stroke is having suffered a previous stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA, sometimes called “a mini-stroke”). Another thing physicians look for is family history. Here are other risk factors, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

■ High blood pressure
■ High cholesterol
■ Heart disease
■ Diabetes
■ Obesity
■ Sickle cell disease

Preventable risk factors include tobacco use, drinking too much alcohol, eating a diet high in saturated fats, trans fat and cholesterol. And not getting enough physical activity.

Stroke Incidents Rising for Middle-aged Americans

While rates of stroke for those 65 and up are falling, the rates for Americans younger than that are climbing.

In the podcast, Dr. Shaheen says older seniors are more likely to stroke because of arrhythmias that create clots, and arteries that are narrower because of vascular disease.

“Younger people have tears in the arteries. They can have things that they’re born with, such as clotting disorders or holes in their heart. Can be on medications, or drugs such as cocaine, marijuana. These can all cause strokes in a certain population.”

But beyond that, reasons for rising rates among younger and middle-aged Americans are hypotheses, he says. One is that diagnostic technology (imaging) and knowledge has led to more accurate reporting.

B.E. F.A.S.T.

From our thoughts to our toes, from our sight to our speech to our memories, the brain is the command center of our entire experience, and blood withheld from any part of it will affect that part of our experience. It can be reversed, but it must be fast.

B.E. F.A.S.T. is the acronym meant to be a quick checklist to visually examine someone who might be having a stroke.

■ B is for Balance: Is the person struggling to maintain balance?
■ E is for Eyes: Is there vision loss or significant blurriness?
■ F is for Face: Look for facial droop or an uneven smile.
■ A is for Arms: Can both arms be raised? Is there weakness in one?
■ S is for Speech: Listen for slurred speech.
■ T is for Time: Every second counts. Call 911.

“A lot of people won’t recognize that they themselves are having a stroke,” Dr. Shaheen said, so this awareness is for bystanders as much as it is potential sufferers.

Lastly, in the face of any of these symptoms, call 911 and wait for medical transportation. Trained paramedics and medical technicians triage en route. Do not drive a potential stroke sufferer to a hospital – or let them get behind the wheel.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN to Dr. Fawad Shaheen’s podcast that explains stroke – what it is exactly and what to watch for.

Visit HF.org/news to keep up with the latest at Health First.

HOT OFF THE PRESS! May 29, 2023 Space Coast Daily News – Brevard County’s Best NewspaperRelated Story:
HOT OFF THE PRESS! May 29, 2023 Space Coast Daily News – Brevard County’s Best Newspaper