'BE FAST': Every second counts to survive a stroke. Here are the signs you need to know and watch out for
An American has a stroke every 40 seconds, and every four minutes, someone dies from stroke. See the signs to watch for, and know why minutes matter.
An American has a stroke every 40 seconds, and every four minutes, someone dies from stroke. See the signs to watch for, and know why minutes matter.
An American has a stroke every 40 seconds, and every four minutes, someone dies from stroke. See the signs to watch for, and know why minutes matter.
An American has a stroke every 40 seconds, and every four minutes, someone dies from stroke. See the signs to watch for, and know why minutes matter.
Everything changed just after 11 a.m. on July 25, 2020, for Casey and Cyndi Brewer of Maryland.
"I remember very little of that day," Casey told sister station WBAL.
"He couldn't get up, and then, he just slumped on to the ground and I called 911," Cyndi said.
Cyndi was shocked when paramedics said her 50-year-old husband was having a stroke.
"I just broke down and cried," Cyndi said.
Casey's condition was bleak. He was taken to University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Health and ultimately needed to go to Shock Trauma in Baltimore.
"I think he was in the helicopter within 20 minutes," Cyndi said.
At Shock Trauma, neurosurgeon Dr. Charles Sansur performed life-saving surgery. He said quick action made all the difference in Casey's survival.
"In Mr. Brewer's case, he was lucky that he got treatment quickly. If the situation gets left unattended and there's not a rapid transfer to emergency care centers, often these patients don't survive," Sansur said.
Video below: 'You lose everything': Family shares experience with stroke
So, how do you recognize when someone is having a stroke?
"In Maryland, and across the country, we use an acronym called 'BE FAST,'" said Lindsay Goff, a stroke program coordinator at UM Upper Chesapeake Health.
- "B" stands for problems with balance.
- "E" stands for eyes — are there issues with vision?
- "F" stands for face — is one side drooping?
- "A" stands for arms — is there weakness on one side?
- "S" stands for speech — is it slurred?
- "T" stands for time.
"We have, from the onset of symptoms, four-and-a-half hours to administer clot-busting medication," Goff said.
But the IV thrombolytic medications only work for ischemic strokes, not the much more rare hemorrhagic stroke — or bleeding — that Casey had.
"Unfortunately, they tend to have a more poor prognosis because we don't know where the bleeding is coming from," Goff told WBAL.
Video below: Full, emotional interview with the Brewers
Casey feels his unlikely survival is for a reason.
"I do feel that I'm going to be used somehow to save lives and help the stroke community," he said.
Casey now works with Goff in a stroke support group.
"I see a change in Casey that he went from focusing on what he lost, but he has truly envisioned the new normal for stroke because he does help me educate the public, and he has now turned that terrible tragedy into a positive move forward by educating the rest of the public -- and that's his mission," Goff said.
Casey's message to other survivors?
"The post-stroke life is difficult, but it's manageable. If you're surrounded by people who love you, people you love, you can get through it," Casey sad.