Wrong thinking puts stroke patients at risk

At the Stroke Center, Bach Mai Hospital (Hanoi), the number of hospitalizations due to strokes during the cold weather last week increased dramatically. Many patients mistook them for having a stroke or catching a cold.

Associate Professor Mai Duy Ton - Director of the Stroke Center, said that cold weather causes blood pressure to increase, many people have sudden high blood pressure causing stroke. In addition, temperature changes cause vasoconstriction, cold environments cause more people to get infections, which is the cause of stroke. During this cold spell, the number of stroke patients under 40 years old has increased. Many people come to the hospital past the golden hour, endangering their lives.

Mr. NCL (35 years old, Hanoi) slept very late. The next morning, it was cold and rainy so he stayed under the blanket. When he woke up around 10 am, Mr. L. felt his arms and legs were weak and he could not stand, so he had to hold onto the wall and sit back in bed. Mr. L. called his family to take him to the emergency room. Before that, he felt his arms numb but thought it was due to the cold and loss of feeling.

At the Stroke Center, Bach Mai Hospital, the doctor diagnosed Mr. L. with a cerebral infarction. He arrived during the golden hour so he was injected with a thrombolytic drug. Mr. L. is now able to move around, talk, and his limbs are no longer paralyzed.

When she woke up, Ms. LTH (Hanoi) suddenly felt weak in her limbs and her mouth was crooked, but her family thought she had a stroke so they took her home to rest. When her condition became more serious, Ms. H. was taken to Bach Mai Hospital for emergency treatment. The woman was diagnosed with a stroke.

Master, Doctor Phung Dinh Tho - Stroke Center said that in the center there are 5 beds for the most severe patients, 2 of whom are under 40 years old, both of whom came to the hospital after the golden hour in a coma, with impaired consciousness. Doctors had to provide intensive emergency treatment.

According to Dr. Vo Hong Khoi, Director of the Neurology Center, Bach Mai Hospital, the number of emergency cases at the center for stroke and neurology has increased by at least 10-15% compared to last week. The Neurology Center alone receives 30-50 patients per day, but in the past 4 days, this number has doubled.

At the Central Geriatric Hospital, according to Dr. Tran Quang Thang, Head of the Emergency and Stroke Department, during the past few cold days, the number of people hospitalized due to stroke in the cold season accounted for 70-80% of the total number of patients treated during the year.

Doctor Thang said that cold weather is the top danger for the elderly with a history of high blood pressure, which can lead to stroke if not treated promptly.

According to doctors, the number of stroke patients arriving during the golden hour (under 4 hours) currently accounts for only 20%. Patients still have incorrect first aid symptoms such as cutting fingers, toes, scraping... Doctor Tho said, there was a case where the family member had cut 10 fingers and 10 toes in the emergency room.

Doctors recommend that on cold days, people with blood pressure problems need to control their blood pressure well, monitor their indicators regularly, take medication as prescribed, and control their blood lipids. They should do light exercise for 3-5 minutes before getting out of bed in the morning, and should not suddenly get out of bed. Keep the temperature in the house balanced, not below 25 degrees and balanced with the outdoor temperature. Drink warm water, limit eating cold foods. Do not take a late bath or cold bath, using warm water around 37 degrees Celsius is most suitable.

People need to keep their bodies warm, not be subjective when going out in the cold and not get up early to exercise. Exercise can be moved indoors to warm up the body such as cycling in place, small steps walking.