World Stroke Day Is Observed On October 29th To Create Awareness On Stroke.

• Image Credit: google

• Oct 29, 2024 | Kabita Pathak

This global observance was created on October 29, 2004, at the World Stroke Congress in Vancouver, Canada…

Digital Desk: World Stroke Day is observed yearly on October 29, and seeks to raise awareness of the seriousness and increasing prevalence of the condition. This day is a reminder of the menace of stroke and its treatment, and the need for early and easy access to such treatment. Stroke is the second cause of death, globally ranked third in disability. Based on data from around 194 countries, stroke incidence stands at about 1.8 million people annually.

 The rates have risen by over 100 % in LMICs, including India, and by 42 % in developed countries. Overall stroke prevalence in India is estimated to be 145 per 100000 population and about four Indians are suffering from stroke every minute. Indeed, stroke surgery is well known to affect elder patients but it can develop in patients of different age groups.

Patients as well as health care consumers should be aware of the risk and regular signs of a stroke. Stroke signs and risk factors should be known to all to avoid severe consequences in case of the disease development. Time is of the essence in such illness and the quicker intervention is made, the higher the likelihood of the patient making a full recovery. A critical tool for spotting stroke signs is the "FAST" acronym:
  Face: Check for facial drooping.
  Arms: Look for weakness in one arm.
  Speech: Anything that starts becoming slurred or sounds very peculiar, stop and get someone to check it out.
  Time: Discharge fast; the first thing to do should be to call your local emergency services.

This global observance was created on October 29, 2004, at the World Stroke Congress in Vancouver, Canada, for that purpose. Through the year 2006, the inter national grouping of individuals who supported the World Stroke Federation and the International Stroke Society merged to form WSO. Since then, the WSO has been campaigning for increased awareness of stroke; in 2010 WSO called for stroke to be considered as a public health emergency and increasing the number of people surviving stroke without significant disability. According to th  surveys conducted in 2016, stroke was responsible for 116 million years of life lost globally.

The slogan for World Stroke Day 2024 is “GreaterThanStroke active challenge.” Social marketing is commonly associated with sports because it is a way of sharing information about the menace and the need to prevent and have follow-up on stoke. This theme points out that irrespective of culture and demography in all parts of the world, people can be targeted using sports for a given population.

World Stroke Day also requires everyone to be fast and act to prevent strokes. Time, time, time – the key to prevention, diagnosis, and reporting: awareness equals less damage and deaths from strokes. The spread of information makes people and communities fight the disease and become a way to enhance the world’s health.