Spencer, IA (KICD)– Each year more than 795 thousand people in the United States suffer from a stroke and the staff at Spencer Hospital are doing their part to help teach some of the warning signs to keep those incidents from becoming fatal.

Alan Faith works in the hospital’s Emergency Department. he says a stroke or “brain attack” happens when blood flow to brain is stopped.

Faith says while a stroke can present differently for each patient there are some common signs that can be identified using the acronym FAST.

The risks of a stroke can be present at any age and become higher with age. Men are also at greater risk but fatal strokes have been noted to be more common in women partially because signs perhaps not always being recognized and treated as quickly.