Time is critical when it comes to preventing strokes from becoming severely debilitating, two Atlanta doctors explained.

“Every minute counts to save brain tissue,” said Dr. Juan Carlos Martinez Gutierrez, a vascular and interventional neurologist with Wellstar Health System.

The most common symptoms are a drooping face, arm or leg weakness, or speech difficulties. Once noticing any of the signs, quick action can increase the likelihood of qualifying for the best treatments.

“We understand that a lot of the outcomes that happen after a stroke are related directly to noticing a stroke or being aware of what the stroke symptoms are,” Martinez Gutierrez said.

Dr. Juan Carlos Martinez Gutierrez, a neurologist at Wellstar Health System, said he sees more younger adults with stroke risk factors similar to older patients. (Courtesy of Wellstar Health System)

An intravenous drug to break up the clot can be administered up to 4½ hours from the onset of stroke symptoms, he said.

There’s also a minimally invasive surgery in which doctors insert a catheter — a thin, flexible tube — and navigate it through the arteries in the arm or leg to the brain to remove the clot. The surgery is for only those with strokes in large blood vessels and can be done up to 24 hours from when the patient last appeared well, Martinez Gutierrez explained.

Compared with a decade ago, Martinez Gutierrez said Wellstar is treating 25% more patients ages 18–45 with stroke — “a notable rise in young adult cases.”

“Young patients, unfortunately, either are sleeping it off or are blowing off minor symptoms or going to call their primary care or some other nonemergency medical service that cannot deal with an acute stroke in a timely fashion,” he added

Dr. Fadi Nahab, a vascular neurologist who oversees the Emory Clinic as Emory Healthcare’s stroke quality director, said the majority of his patients are still older than 65, but the percentage of patients 18-45 is “definitely rising.”

Younger patients may seek care with similar symptoms to the older patients, but often delay diagnosis because they don’t think stroke would affect someone their age, Nahab said. But as symptoms persist, they may end up in the emergency room, where a brain scan leads to the stroke diagnosis.

Dr. Fadi Nahab, an Emory Healthcare neurologist, said he sees more younger patients with nontraditional risk factors for stroke. (Courtesy of Emory University)

If you seek emergency care within the first few hours, treatments can reverse injury, Nahab explained. Otherwise, brain tissue dies and can cause more permanent disability or take longer to recover through rehabilitation, he said.

Caught early, doctors can open the blocked artery in the brain and restore blood flow, reversing complete paralysis.

“It’s really miraculous.”

Nahab suggested this acronym to remember common symptoms: