The golden hour for stroke emergency treatment.

Each year, Vietnam records approximately 200,000 stroke cases, with the majority of patients arriving at the hospital too late, missing the "golden hour"—the optimal time for life-saving intervention and minimizing sequelae.

This is one of the reasons why stroke is a leading cause of death and also leaves patients with a significant disability burden.

According to information from the Stroke Center (Military Central Hospital 108), stroke is caused by blood clots or plaque in blood vessels, leading to blockage or rupture of blood vessels in the brain, causing brain cells to die suddenly due to lack of oxygen.

The "golden hour" in stroke treatment is the first 3 to 6 hours after symptoms appear.

The reason stroke victims need emergency care as quickly as possible is because it's a race against time to protect brain cells. Every minute of delay in emergency care means that up to 2 million brain cells are dying. The sooner emergency care is provided, the lower the rate of cell death, the higher the chances of survival, and the less severe the patient's long-term effects.

During the "golden hour," interventions such as intravenous thrombolytic therapy or mechanical thrombectomy can help restore blood flow to blocked cerebral vessels, saving brain cells from death and restoring motor and cognitive function.

Although emergency care for stroke patients should be prioritized within the "golden hour," in reality, many patients are missed due to various reasons.

To help people recognize early warning signs of stroke, medical experts have introduced the FAST rule. Specifically, F (Face) indicates drooping on one side of the face or a crooked mouth; A (Arms) indicates weakness or paralysis on one side of the arm or leg; S (Speech) indicates slurred speech, difficulty speaking, or inability to understand instructions; T (Time) indicates the time frame for getting the patient to emergency care or calling an ambulance as soon as possible to a medical facility capable of treating stroke.

Modern hospitals in Hanoi such as Bach Mai Hospital, Military Central Hospital 108, Viet Duc Friendship Hospital, Thanh Nhan Hospital... all have specialized stroke units, ready to receive and treat patients within the golden hour. Note that people should absolutely not use traditional remedies like cupping therapy, administer blood pressure medication, or expect patients to recover on their own.

hanoimoi.vn

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/gio-vang-cap-cuu-dot-quy-post648660.html