Rise In Women Under 65 Suffering Strokes

In the last eight years, there has been more under 65s in Yorkshire who have suffered from a stroke – which shows it’s not just a disease that affects older people.

That’s according to The Stroke Association, which found there was a 15% increase in people aged 20 to 64 years-old.

Leeds mum, Gemma McKeating, is helping to raise awareness of the issue. She told Radio Aire that she suffered her first stroke when she was 24-years-old after her drink was spiked on a night out.

She then suffered a second stroke four years later.

“It was really difficult for the first two weeks especially. My son was just about to turn two, I was a stay-at-home mum and I couldn’t have any control physically, at all, or speak to him ... I make clothes in my spare time, I was unable to do that because I only had use of one side of my body.

“We were really shocked that it happened… When I was in hospital there was a girl a couple of years older than me – she’d just come back from her honeymoon and her husband found her and she’d had a stroke. A lot of people on the ward weren’t as you think, they weren’t seventy plus”.

The study warns that people could be burdened financially by the disease, including family members and health care services. This is because some survivors might not be able to return to work, resulting in less income to pay household bills. The study also found that in Yorkshire and the Humberside, there’s been a rise in the number of men aged between 40 and 54 going to hospital after having a stroke, which is partly due to unhealthy lifestyles, lack of exercise and a change in hospital admission practice.

Julia MacLeod, Regional Head of Operations at the Stroke Association, said

“The simple truth is that we must do more to raise people’s awareness of risk factors, to help prevent them from having a stroke. With many more stroke patients now receiving emergency medical treatment, we also need the right health and social care services available. People must have the support they need to make the best possible recovery and avoid having to cope for decades with the disabilities that stroke can bring.”

For more information, visit the NHS website by clicking here.