Maryland

Do you know the two simple steps of Hands-Only^TM CPR?  If so, then you are ready to save a life.

It is simple: If you see a teen or adult collapse, call 9-1-1 and push hard and fast in the center of the chest to the beat of the Bee Gees’ disco classic “Stayin’ Alive.”  This can more than double a person’s chance of survival.  Click here to watch the 60 second training video for Hands-Only^TM CPR.

So, now you are trained…but why is this so important?

• Over 90% of cardiac arrest victims do not survive.
• There are approximately 360,000 cardiac deaths outside of the hospital each year in the United States—with about three quarters of them occurring in the home.
• Cardiac arrest can happen to anyone at any time. Many victims appear healthy, with no known heart disease or other risk factors.
• Cardiac arrest is not the same as a heart attack.  Cardiac arrest occurs when electrical impulses in the heart become rapid or chaotic, which causes the heart to suddenly stop beating.  A heart attack occurs when the blood supply to part of the heart muscle is blocked.  A heart attack may cause a cardiac arrest.
• Only 40% of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest receive bystander CPR.  Effective bystander CPR, provided immediately after cardiac arrest, can double or triple a victim’s chance of survival.

Feel good about yourself yet?  You should--by giving up one minute of your day you will now be trained to help save the life of one of the thousands of people who will be a victim of cardiac arrest this year. 

Whether the person you save is a stranger or a loved one, you can make a difference that means the world to them.

My husband, Paul Berger, suffered a stroke over 25 years ago at the age of 36, when he was at the gym exercising.  He had the worst headache ever, and was suffering from extreme dizziness. He asked the attendant at the desk for an aspirin.  Fortunately, they called an ambulance.  If he had been at home, I would not have recognized the symptoms, and probably would have killed him by giving him a dose of aspirin.  He was experiencing a ruptured aneurysm, blood gushing out of a hole in a large blood vessel leading to his brain.  The aspirin would have hastened the bleeding.

Stroke is the 4^th leading cause of death, and a leading cause of disability among adults.  According to the American Stroke Association, about 795,000 Americans suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year, stroke kills more than 128,000 people a year, and more than $38 billion is spent each year on stroke-related medical costs and disability.

Strokes occur among people of all ages, and among otherwise healthy-looking women and men.  Eighty percent of strokes are caused by clots in blood vessels in the brain blocking the flow of oxygen and nutrients to brain cells; 20 percent are caused by ruptured vessels killing brain cells with a flood of lethal blood.

When Paul had his stroke, even state-of-the-art care couldn’t locate the rupture and while we waited a week in the hospital to repeat the tests, he had a second bleeding episode, leaving him severely disabled.  Today, thanks to advances in imaging and interventional neuroradiology, there’s a much better track record in finding and treating ruptured aneurysms.

For the 80 percent suffering clot-induced strokes, getting to the hospital immediately will allow time to diagnose and begin treatment using clot-busting drugs.  Unfortunately, there’s a small window of time for this treatment, about 3 to 4 hours from the first sign of stroke.  The sooner the person having the stroke gets to the hospital, the sooner appropriate treatment can begin.

Since the person suffering the stroke often cannot act to call 9-1-1, everyone should learn the warning signs, and to act quickly.  It is much better to call an ambulance immediately than to wait to see if the symptoms go away.  This means that spouses, co-workers, friends, children and grandchildren need to learn the signs and how to act immediately, even if the person having the stroke seems resistant.

An easy way to remember the symptoms of stroke is “F.A.S.T.” for:

• F:  Face Drooping.  Does one side of the face droop or is it numb? Ask the person to smile.
• A:  Arm Weakness.  Is one arm weak or numb? Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward?
• S:  Speech Difficulty.  Is speech slurred, are they unable to speak, or are they hard to understand?  Ask the person to repeat a simple sentence, like “the sky is blue.”  Is the sentence repeated correctly?
• T:  Time to call 9-1-1. If the person shows any of these symptoms, even if the symptoms go away, call 9-1-1 and get them to the hospital immediately.

The American Stroke Association, part of the American Heart Association, and the National Stroke Association have many helpful tools for educating yourself and others about stroke.  Learn about it today.  If it could happen to my otherwise healthy husband, then it could happen to you, or to your loved ones.

Ask Your Representative to Support Stroke Awareness Today!

**Blog content provided by You’re the Cure Virigina member, Stephanie Mensh.**

Breanna Sudano, Maryland

On September 27, 2011, two weeks before my 14^th birthday, while playing in a field hockey game for my high school, I collapsed and went into sudden cardiac arrest.  Two coaches recognized that I was not breathing and without hesitation, immediately started CPR. 

I was also very fortunate that there were three parents at the game, who happened to be nurses, who took over performing CPR for the two coaches.  Between the five of them, they performed CPR on me for over 7 minutes until the ambulance came and used a defibrillator to administer the shock needed to reset my heart.  If not for them performing CPR, my family was told I most likely would not have survived and that because the coaches started CPR immediately, I suffered no brain or organ damage. 

These five women will forever be my heroes.  Because of them, I am one of the fortunate ones who fall into the eight percent of people who survive a sudden cardiac arrest event outside of the hospital.  I was diagnosed with an anomalous coronary artery, which is a congenital birth defect and underwent open heart surgery.  That's my cardiologist, Dr Gaskin, with me in the picture below.  Without detection of this defect, it was inevitable that at some point in my life, I was going to suffer a sudden cardiac arrest event. 

Since then, I’ve been able to participate in You’re the Cure to help encourage legislators to support more people learning CPR.  I’m especially interested in the bill to train students in CPR before they graduate from high school.  Our community needs as many CPR-trained people as we can get! 

I was very lucky that when this did happen, there were five people trained in CPR who saved my life.  Through this life changing experience, I have learned that life is truly a blessing and to appreciate every single minute.  Not everyone will be as lucky as I was.  If more people were trained in CPR, the survival rate for sudden cardiac arrest would increase and more lives would be saved.

On April 29th, Baltimore City Council lead by Councilwoman Helen Holton and the American Heart Association joined forces to co-sponsor a Get to Goal launch. City council members and their staff participated in blood pressures screenings and signed up for the Get to Goal challenge. Also, participants received information about heart health, nutrition and fitness tips. The challenge continues through August.

Watch the video below to see a message from Helen Holton on the challenge.

(Please visit the site to view this video)

The Baltimore City Council and the DC City Council have challenged each other to have 100% staff and council participation in the AHA Heart 360 program for the next four months. Inspired in part by DC’s Worksite Wellness policy that promotes healthy choices among employees, the Baltimore City Council enthusiastically stepped up for the challenge.

Did you know that most people do not realize they have high blood pressure?  High blood pressure, the silent killer, is a condition that greatly increases your risk of heart disease and stroke, especially when it goes unmanaged.  The American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s hypertension initiative, Get to Goal, is here to help provide people with knowledge about high blood pressure, and provide participants with a tool to keep track of their blood pressure.

To learn more about Baltimore’s Get to Goal program and to enroll yourself to track and manage your heart health visit the Heart 360 website.

Do you have a hypertension story?  Care to share? If so, click here.

We want to invite you to ignite a conversation about stroke to help educate those around you as we enter into American Stroke Month.  Stroke is the No. 4 cause of death and a leading cause of long-term preventable disability in the United State, yet Americans don’t consider stroke to be a major health concern.

What is a stroke? A stroke occurs when a blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients in the brain is either blocked by a clot or bursts.  When this occurs, part of the brain can no longer get the blood and oxygen it needs, so that portion of the brain dies.

Thankfully there are some tools that can be used to help recognize stroke symptoms early to help decrease the amount of damage in the brain.  One of these tools that the American Heart Association promotes is the acronym F.A.S.T.

F.A.S.T is an acronym used for recognizing and responding to the sudden warning signs of stroke.  The letters stand for:

• Face Dropping – Ask the person to smile.  Does one side of the face droop or is it numb?
• Arm Weakness– Ask the person to raise both arms. Is one arm weak or numb? Does one arm drift downward?
• Speech Difficulty– Ask the person to repeat a simple sentence, like “the sky is blue.” Is the sentence repeated correctly? Are they unable to speak, or are they hard to understand?
• Time to call 9-1-1– If the person shows any of these symptoms, even if the symptoms go away, call 9-1-1 and get them to the hospital immediately.

To learn more about stroke, the effects of stroke, and how to spread the word about stroke click here.

Do you have a personal story about stroke?  If so, we would love to hear it! Click here and share your story today.

Did you know about F.A.S.T?  Have you thought of ways to share with your friends and family?  If so, tell us about it in the comments section!

Every single day, all over the country, lives are saved and improved because of you. Thanks to your commitment, talent, and passion as a volunteer, Americans are living healthier and lowering their chances of heart disease and stroke.

In honor of National Volunteer Week, we'd like to take a moment to say thank you for the difference you make in so many lives! Please click on the link below and you'll see why!

From the bottom of our hearts--we want to Thank You for all you do!

Just in time for the cherry blossoms blooming in DC, more than 300 American Heart Association and American Stroke Association advocates from across the county descended upon our nation's capitol, eager to request the restoration of federal funding to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and support for the Million Hearts Campaign.

The American Heart Association relies on research funded by the NIH. With the recent sequester slashing the NIH budget by nearly $1.5 billion, about 2,300 research grants will go unfunded, causing a reduction in both the job market and economic activity. A typical NIH grant supports about seven full-time or part-time jobs, most of them high-tech. Every dollar that the NIH distributes through grants returns more than $2 in goods and services annually to the community.

Armed with the names of 6,000 advocates who signed the "Many Hearts, One Voice for Medical Research" petition, this group of volunteers, survivors, researchers, and healthcare professionals joined forces with thousands of advocates, representing over 200 patient groups and research institutions. Together, they attended the Rally for Medical Research on Monday to urge Congress to make research funding a national priority.

The following day, advocates met with their Senators and Congressmen to share their own personal stories, driving home the need for medical research funding.

Advocates attending voiced their passion for the effort, many expressing how impactful it was to be able to deliver these important requests personally to their legislators and their staff members.

There has been a flurry of Red in Annapolis this month celebrating AHA’s Go Red 10^th year anniversary! On February  19^th,  there were two events that continued the theme of heart month at the Capitol: Maryland Go Red Legislative Event and You’re the Cure lobby day.

The events were held in partnership with the Maryland Women’s Legislative Caucus and the local Chapter of the American College of Cardiology. It was a full day of activities including a heart healthy breakfast for legislative members, “Ask a Doc” sessions, CPR training and a You’re the Cure advocacy day!  Over 160 members, staff and AHA volunteers attended the event to learn more about our policy issues, receive heart healthy information and learn hands-only CPR training.  Advocates discussed not only CPR training requirements, but also the importance of banning trans fats in restaurants, telemedicine expansion, and the need to ensure each citizen receives preventive benefits at no cost. 

The event was broadcast on WBAL-TV’s  5 and 6 pm newscast highlighting a young survivor, Brianna Sudano, who is an AHA advocate fighting for CPR training as a graduation requirement in Maryland. The newscast can be found here: :  http://www.wbaltv.com/news/politics/Legislators-introduce-hands-only-CPR-school-requirement/-/9379266/18987732/-/11n4lnhz/-/index.html

Visit our Facebook page for more photos from Maryland Goes Red Legislative Event and You’re the Cure Lobby Day: http://www.facebook.com/MarylandAHA

The American Heart Association’s Go Red For Women movement in the state of Maryland is asking everyone to help America Go Red this year! On February 14^th, AHA volunteers stood with Senator Pugh, Delegate Lee, the Women’s Caucus, members and staff of the Maryland General Assembly on the steps of the capitol in Annapolis, and later participated in the proclamation presentation to commemorate February as Heart Month in Maryland.

Women’s Legislative Caucus challenges all to Go Red during February by encouraging citizens and colleagues to wear red, work to light up landmarks and buildings red, discuss heart disease and prevention with their friends, colleagues and family and to seek information through GoRedForWomen.org.

Go Red Ambassadors, survivors and staff gathered at the State House in Annapolis on February 14^th.

AHA and many other health organizations across the country are working hard to put a stop to the $2.5 Billion NIH Sequester (across-the-board cut) that is scheduled to take place in January of 2013, unless congress votes against it. This Sequester could be the cause of thousands of jobs lost, and an even greater number of cuts in research grants that could help save lives.

Last week, youth advocates Thomas Hannah from Columbia, MD and Hannah Brewer from Manchester, MD who was also recently crowned Miss Maryland Teen USA met with both Senator Mikulski and Congressman Cumming’s office to discuss this pressing issue. They both had the opportunity to share their personal experiences with heart disease and why they are so passionate about keeping this funding that can go towards life-saving research.

Check out their stories in the video links below.  Hannah and Thomas handled their legislator meetings with great confidence and did an outstanding job. Way to go You’re The Cure advocates!

• Mikulski's office: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DA4T7PF3kw
• Cumming's office: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UI0AIrk9cUg&feature=youtu.be
• Hannah's story: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCVHSx6VNss
• Thomas' story: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0kWX9O7fZ4

Maryland is one of the top states to be affected by the NIH Sequester. The cut could potentially result in 30,000 jobs lost, and 1,916  jobs in Maryland alone.  On November 14, AHA along with a few other health organizations held a lobby day for all those in support of this issue to get together and persuade their legislators to support the cause.

Readers, don’t forget that you can take action in your community just like Thomas and Hannah by working with You’re the Cure!