U.S. Initiative Seeks to Boost Hispanic Stroke ...( Community-based education effort to s...),Health

Community-based education effort to stress recognition of symptoms, emergency procedures

TUESDAY, Aug. 28 (HealthDay News) -- A new campaign to increase stroke awareness among Hispanics in the United States has been launched by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS).

The initiative is designed to promote the NINDS national stroke education program, "Know Stroke, Know the Signs, Act in Time," among Hispanics by providing a Spanish-language tool kit that can be used by health educators to educate members of their communities about the signs of stroke and the importance of calling 911 at the first signs of a stroke. Prompt treatment of stroke can significantly decrease or even prevent long-term disability.

The stroke information can be viewed in Spanish online at http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/spanish/ataque_cerebral.htm.

For this campaign, NINDS is working with a number of national Hispanic organizations.

"Some people do not recognize stroke as a medical emergency and may not feel comfortable calling 911 due to possible perceived language barriers," Dr. Jose G. Merino, a staff clinician in NINDS' Section of Stroke Diagnostics and Therapeutics, said in a prepared statement.

"It is important that Hispanics know how to recognize the signs of stroke and feel confident saying only 'stroke' when calling 911 to receive immediate medical treatment," Merino added.

More information

Here's where you can find out more about the Know Stroke campaign.

-- Robert Preidt

SOURCE: U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, news release, August 2007