Stroke study: Clot-busting drug not used enough

Strokes are the leading cause of long-term disability in America, with a stroke occurring every 40 seconds in the U.S., according to the American Stroke Association.

A clot-busting drug called tissue plasminogen activator, also known as tPA, can help. But, according to an American Heart Association study, not enough patients receive it in time.

On "The Early Show," CBS News Medical Correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton explained that only three- to five percent of stroke patients who get to the hospital in time receive this drug.

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She said, "There is a critical window of opportunity, time-wise. As soon as possible. But within one- to four and-a-half hours is really the window of opportunity for this drug to work."

Ashton added there are many types of strokes. This drug is used to bust up a clot in a certain type of stroke known as an ischemic stroke, in which a clot blocks off a blood vessel and deprives that part of the brain of much-needed blood flow.

How important can this drug be if you have a stroke?

Ashton said, "(It) makes the difference between having a long-term disability ... and getting a full recovery. We always say, in neurology, time lost is brain loss, so the faster you get this drug, the better your long-term prognosis would be."

To detect stroke symptoms more quickly, Ashton said, people should be on the lookout for anything from a severe headache to numbness in your head, face or limbs.

In addition, trouble speaking or in understanding other people's speech, blurry vision, a change in your vision and/or a loss of balance might be stroke symptoms.

"These people can even look drunk in some cases," she said. "So again, you need to know what they are for yourself, but you also need to recognize them in those around you."

And strokes aren't age-specific, Ashton said.

"We're seeing more and more strokes in younger and younger people. It's not just the elderly," she said.

"Prevention is key. You want to reduce the risk factors that we know are associated with stroke: obesity, smoking, controlling diabetes and high blood pressure. But there are other medical conditions that really stack the deck against you and increase your risk of stroke, (such as) sickle cell disease, certain heart disease or vascular disease. If you have one of those risk factors or a history of a clotting disorder, talk to your doctor about lowering that risk."