Professor Stephen Sarfo, Consultant Neurosurgeon at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Prof. Stephen Sarfo has disclosed that there has been a surge in the cases of stroke recorded at the facility.
He says KATH admitted at least one thousand persons with stroke-related ailments last year.
This, he stated, is about a 500% increase to what the hospital was recording 40 years ago in 1980, but said currently KATH has trained specialists, radiologists and other essential medical practitioners including neurologists to treat patients better.
Prof Stephen Sarfo revealed about 52% of the cases are women.
Prof Stephen Sarfo in an interview with 3news admonished the youthful population to be mindful of their eating habits by eating healthy diets and also exercising.
Speaking on the sidelines of a new technology for the treatment of stroke patients, he stressed the need for persons with risk factors of getting stroke such as diabetes and hypertension to always seek periodic medical attention.
Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital has launched a new service ‘Stroke Thrombolysis’ that seeks to save hundreds of stroke patients who seek immediate treatment.
He noted that with the new technology of Thrombolysis, any patient who is brought to KATH within an hour or two after the attack would be treated to ensure blood flows freely to the brain.
‘’Currently, we can use Thrombolysis, which is a novel and revolutionary service to assess, treat and cure patients who are brought to our facility within the stipulated time and even though the cost is GHC15, 000.00 patients who can afford can have the chance to live normal lives after the interventions’’, Prof Sarfo stated.
KATH CEO
Professor Dr Otchere Addai-Mensah, Chief Executive Officer of KATH said the novel service, which is medically termed as Thrombolysis to treat and manage stroke cases at the facility is heartwarming.
He noted that stroke is one of the leading causes of deaths at KATH as well as the country as a whole, adding that it is relieving to announce such a service to the public, patients and customers of KATH.
‘’I am elated KATH would be offering the Thrombolysis service that is going to save hundreds of stroke patients admitted to this hospital from preventable morbidities and mortalities’’, the CEO stated.
Prof Addai-Mensah disclosed that the World Health Organisation (WHO) names Stroke as a major health concern in Ghana and estimates that there are about 1.4 million stroke survivors in the country.
This figure, he mentioned, might steadily rise in the coming years due to factors such as modernization, aging population and the onset of sedentary lifestyles among others.
The CEO noted that risk factors such as the rising cases of hypertension, diabetes, obesity, smoking, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and excessive alcohol consumption were all contributory factors to the rising trajectory of Strokes in Ghana.
‘’Stroke occurs when the blood supply to part of the brain is impaired or reduced resulting in the brain being deprived of oxygen and nutrients’’, the CEO explained.