US doctors urged to treat stroke fast

Stroke should be considered to be a medical emergency, with treatment started within three hours of symptoms, say 10 leading medical organisations in the United States.

The new national education campaign recommends that patients with ischaemic strokes–about 80% of patients with stroke–should get tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) unless it is contraindicated.

The campaign, endorsed by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders (part of the National Institutes of Health), the American Medical Association, the American Heart Association, and the American Academy of Neurology, …