“More than 80% of strokes are preventable, so knowing your risk is the first big step in making sure you don’t experience one,” said Dr. Jody Short, a neurologist with Mercy Health – Springfield Interventional Neurology. “There are numerous ways you can lower stroke risk, from making healthy lifestyle changes to working with your health care provider to control certain risk factors.”
After the assessment collects data including age and activity level, it will ask about family history, diet and other health concerns including diabetes and high blood pressure, according to the release. It will then give the user “a detailed recommendation tailored to their specific circumstance.” A follow-up from Mercy Health is available if requested, but no personal medical information will be shared.
“Knowledge is power. There are certainly things that make someone more susceptible to stroke such as your age or having a family history,” Short said in the release. “You can’t change those things, but if you’re aware it’s predisposing you to a higher risk of stroke, you can take steps to alleviate the effects of that risk.”
Stroke risk can be reduced by smoking cessation, increased physical activity, a healthy diet and regular check-up health care visits.
Every 40 seconds, someone in the U.S. has a stroke, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Every three minutes and 14 seconds, someone dies of a stroke.
Stroke is the second-leading cause of death in Clark County and the third in Champaign County.
According to the American Stroke Association, a stroke can cause symptoms including one-sided paralysis, speech or language problems, vision impairment, changes in behavior and memory loss. An untreated stroke can result in more long-term disabilities or death.
American Stroke Month is recognized each May.
The hospital recently opened an interventional neurology suite with a minimally invasive technology that is used to diagnose and treat strokes and other neurological conditions known as biplane angiography. This ended the requirement to transfer stroke patients to Dayton or Columbus.
The stroke risk assessment can be taken at mercy.com/SpringfieldStrokeQuiz.
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