Cape Town - More people in their 20s and 30s are having strokes, which can affect even children and babies, warns the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
Germiston dad Dean de Agrella did not know that his 15-year-old daughter Cassy was suffering a stroke when she became unresponsive last September. “I couldn’t believe it, I never thought it could happen in children,” he said.
During a stroke, blood vessels in the brain become blocked or burst, cutting off oxygen and blood to an area of the brain. Strokes can cause permanent damage and even be fatal.
World Stroke Day is marked on October 29.
While people older than 65 are at higher risk of stroke, strokes can happen at any age, including teenagers, children and even newborn babies.
Heart and Stroke Foundation chief executive Vash Mungal-Singh said younger people were getting strokes, fuelled by unhealthy lifestyles characterised by poor diet, tobacco and alcohol use, and low levels of physical activity.
Almost 400 South Africans between the ages of 15 and 24 died from strokes in 2000 – the most recent statistic available.
About 600 South Africans in their early 20s and 30s died of a stroke that year.
If a stroke occurs and blood cannot flow to the region in the brain that controls a particular body function, that body part will not work properly. Paralysis in one or both sides of the face is the most well-known effect of a stroke but strokes can also cause vision, speech, language and memory problems. Cassy’s condition slowly improved after months of rehabilitation therapy before she suffered another stroke in June. “Even though this time we knew what was going on, it was still a tremendous shock,” De Agrella said.
The second stroke was not as severe as the first, but it set her back considerably and she had to start rehabilitation again.
According to the Heart and Stroke Foundation, some of the symptoms of a paediatric stroke include:
* Seizures.
* Worsening and sudden headaches.
* Sudden difficulty speaking, including slurred speech or problems comprehending speech.
* Weakness on one side of the body.
* A sudden loss of vision or abnormal eye movement.
* And a loss of balance and trouble walking. – Health-E News Service