Medical experts on Tuesday, June 16, warned against the increasing number of stroke cases, advising the public not to disregard symptoms and seek early medical intervention.

In a media forum, Dr. Ryndell Alava, chairperson of the Department of Neuroscience, Head, Brain and Spine Center of the Western Visayas Medical Center (WVMC) in Iloilo City, said that since the hospital began offering stroke services in 2016, the WVMC served 951 stroke patients in 2017; 1,063 in 2018; 975 in 2019; and 120 during the pandemic in 2020.

The WVMC established the Department of Neuroscience in 2024, which accounted for more than 800 cases.

In 2025, the number rose to more than 2,000, and this year, the average number of stroke patients is four to five a day.

“This is one of the reasons why we wanted to have this public awareness program, because we wanted to address the increasing cases that are being brought to us. Most of these cases are middle-aged individuals, from age 30-50, working group, at the start of their career. Most of these cases are severe,” he said.

During a stroke, Alava said the flow of blood to the brain stops.

There are two kinds of stroke – the ischemic stroke, where a clot blocks blood flow to the area of the brain, and the hemorrhagic stroke, where bleeding occurs around brain tissue.

“For easier recall, usually we call stroke as brain attack just to emphasize the urgency. Similar to a heart attack, the brain attack is also a medical emergency needing appropriate attention and treatment, as soon as possible,” he said.

Dr. Dureza Abad, section chair of the Department of Neuroscience Adult Neurology Head Stroke Services, said that 75 percent of cases have an underlying cause.

These include risk factors, such as hypertension, diet, stress, smoking, and frequent alcohol intake.

“If we can control the risk factors, there is a lesser chance of suffering from stroke,” Abad said.

The public is also encouraged to know their blood pressure, blood sugar, blood cholesterol, body mass index, and waist circumference.

The medical experts recommended immediate intervention upon seeing manifestations, such as loss of balance, dizziness, blurred vision, one side of the face drooping or is being numb, arm or leg weakness, and speech difficulty.PNA