Stroke symptoms come on quickly. Drugs are available that can reduce stroke damage, but they must be administered promptly. Have someone call 911 immediately!
Common acute stroke symptoms:
- Sudden numbness or weakness of face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body
- Sudden confusion, or trouble speaking or understanding speech
- Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes
- Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, or loss of balance or coordination
- Sudden severe headache with no known cause
Common post-stroke symptoms
- Paralysis on one side of the body (hemiplegia)
- Weakness on one side of the body (hemiparesis)
- Lack of awareness of one side of the body or one side of the visual field (hemineglect)
- Difficulty swallowing (dysphagia)
- Trouble talking, caused by facial weakness (dysarthria)
- Difficulty speaking or understanding speech, caused by damage to the brain's language centers (aphasia)