Mumbai records 200-300 strokes daily

Mumbai: It's a mind-numbing statistic: the city records between 200 and 300 cases of stroke every day. But Indian Stroke Association officials say the bigger worry is that less than a fourth of these patients actually seek medical attention. Not surprisingly, the WorldHealth Organization lists stroke as the third leading killer in India, behind heart attacks and cancer. 

    "About 15 lakh strokes occur across the country every year, averaging between 3,000 and 4,000 a day,'' says Dr Shirish Hastak, a member of the Indian Stroke Association. 
    Of the 200-300 daily stroke victims in Mumbai, barely 50 reach treatment centers. "Of those, only seven get thrombolytic treatment within the golden period of six to seven hours,'' says Hastak. 
    Dr Sangeeta Ravat, head of KEM Hospital's neurology department, says that smoking, along with stress, is the biggest risk factor for stroke in India. "Three factors hamper stroke treatment in India: scarcity of dedicated stroke clinics, shortage of neurologists, and the failure of patients to reach treatment centers within six to seven hours," she says. Timely treatment can not only save lives but also prevent complications such as paralysis. Intravenous treatment within six hours of a stroke will leave little or no effect. Even for a patient who comes later—within eight to 12 hours — there is a new device that can be surgically put to remove the clot. 
    Despite having a few dedicated stroke units, Mumbai has another problem: improper distribution of patients as per the severity of their stroke. "The scale devised by the US-based National Institutes of Health needs to be used,'' Hastak says. Usually, a patient with a stroke score of less than four can be treated at nursing homes. "Those with a score of over 8 definitely need to be moved to a stroke clinic within six hours.''