Stroke should be treated quickly

Stroke should be treated quickly

People who suffer from a stroke should be treated by a doctor
within three hours of experiencing it to enable them to have a
better chance of recovering, an official said here over the
weekend.

Indonesian Stroke Foundation (Yastroki) Deputy Chairman
Haryono Suyono said that people who had a stroke could be saved
from death or major brain damage if they were taken to hospital
within the first three hours.

Speaking at the Jakarta Islamic Hospital, he said that the
foundation planned to hold forums, involving district and
subdistrict chiefs here, to improve their awareness about
strokes.

Haryono, who is the former coordinating minister for social
welfare and poverty alleviation, said Yastroki planned to run
major campaigns through the mass media to improve the awareness
of Jakarta residents on stroke.

He said Jakarta would be chosen as a pilot project for such a
medical campaign because the capital city had the largest number
of stroke patients among large cities in the country.

President of the Indonesian Neurological Association Samino
said the increase in the number of stroke patients was caused by
an increase in unhealthy habits, such as smoking, drinking
alcohol and the cholesterol contained in food.

He said strokes were also caused by diabetes, stress,
hypertension and cardiovascular diseases. --JP