Do a quick prehospital assessment when in doubt of a stroke event and save a life. Time is brain.
1.) Facial Droop ( have pt show teeth or smile)
-Normal: both sides of face move equally.
-Abnormal: One side of face does not move as well as the other side.
2.) Arm Drift ( pt closes eyes and extends both arms straight out, with palm up for 10 seconds.
- Normal: both arms move the same or both arms do not move at all ( other findings, such as pronator drift may be helpful)
-Abnormal: one arm does not move or one arm drifts down compared to the other.
3.) Abnormal Speech: ( have the patient say " you cant teach an old dog new tricks" ) may use pts primary language( if pt doesnt speak english) using any complete sentence.
Normal: pt uses correct words with no slurring.
Abnormal: pt slurs word, uses the wrong words or is unable to speak.
Interpretation: According to AHA guidelines, if any one of these three signs is abnormal, the probability of a stroke is 72%