[Medical Q&A] Do you know what the early identification slogan for stroke, “BE FAST”, means?

Author: Liu Huizhen, deputy chief physician of China Rehabilitation Research Center

Reviewer: Guo Shubin, Chief Physician, Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, Capital Medical University

Stroke is also called "stroke". The early identification slogan "BE FAST" proposed by the Chinese Stroke Association on "World Stroke Day" in 2021 can help us quickly identify stroke and allow patients to receive timely treatment.

First of all, “BE FAST” means “be fast” in Chinese, which once again reminds us of the time urgency of stroke treatment, because the earlier the stroke patient is discovered and the earlier the rescue is, the better the prognosis will be.

"B" is the first letter of the English word "Balance", which means "balance" in Chinese. It refers to the sudden loss of balance or coordination, often accompanied by dizziness and a spinning feeling. Patients often feel unsteady when walking, their bodies lean to one side, or become more clumsy than usual when doing fine movements. Although other diseases can also cause imbalance, considering the severity of the disease, we must first be alert to the possibility of stroke.

"E" is the first letter of the English word "Eye", which means eye in Chinese, and refers to sudden changes in vision or difficulty in seeing. The most common symptom of difficulty in seeing related to stroke is "double vision", which means seeing double images, one becomes two, and is often accompanied by difficulty in moving the eyeball in a certain direction; it can also manifest as hemianopsia, that is, the left or right half of the entire visual field is suddenly missing. If the patient feels that one eyelid suddenly cannot be lifted, it should also be taken seriously.

"F" is the first letter of the English word "Face", which means face in Chinese. It refers to sudden facial asymmetry and crooked corners of the mouth. Face the patient and check whether the nasolabial grooves on both sides of the patient are equally deep, and whether one side is shallower. Then ask the patient to grin or show his teeth to observe whether the mouth is crooked.

"A" is the first letter of the English word "Arm", which means arm in Chinese. It refers to sudden weakness or numbness in the arm, usually on one side of the body. Patients may sometimes have weakness or numbness in the lower limbs on the same or opposite side, drag their steps when walking, lean to one side, and even be unable to walk independently.

"S" is the first letter of the English word "Speech", which means language in Chinese. The patient's speech suddenly becomes unclear and lisp, or he cannot understand other people's language, has no response in communication, or answers irrelevant questions. Some patients can understand other people's speech and can pronounce, but cannot speak, or they use wrong words, have difficulty in speech, and cannot speak coherent sentences.

"T" is the first letter of the English word "Time", which means time in Chinese. It once again emphasizes the importance of the time of medical treatment. If the patient has any of the above symptoms, it indicates that a stroke is likely to have occurred. Please do not wait for the symptoms to ease or disappear on their own. Immediately call the "120" emergency number for help.