• Hans Worthmann, Andreas Schwartz, Fedor Heidenreich, Eckhart Sindern, Reinhard Lorenz, Hans-Anton Adams, Andreas Flemming, Klaus Luettje, Ulla Walter, Birgit Haertle, and Reinhard Dengler.
• Department of Neurology, Hannover Medical School, Carl-Neuberg-Strasse 1, Hannover, Germany. worthmann.hans@mh-hannover.de
• Int J Stroke. 2013 Jul 1;8(5):286-92.

BackgroundPublic stroke awareness and knowledge may be supportive for stroke prevention and emergency care-seeking behavior after the acute event, which is highly important for early treatment onset.AimsIn an urban population in Northern Germany (Hannover), a six-month stroke educational campaign was conducted. We expected an increase in stroke knowledge and awareness thereafter.MethodsComputer-assisted telephone interviews were randomly conducted among 1004 representative participants before and 1010 immediately after the educational multimedia campaign. The computer-assisted telephone interviews focused on questions about stroke knowledge and interventions remembered.ResultsKnowledge of stroke risk factors increased during the campaign for overweight, physical inactivity, old age, and stroke in family (P < 0·05). The knowledge of stroke warning signs was low, although it significantly increased during the campaign (P < 0·001) as paresis/weakness (46%) and speech problems (31%) were most frequently named. The majority of respondents indicated that the first action after suffering from stroke should be calling emergency care (74% before vs. 84% after campaign, P < 0·001).ConclusionsOur data indicate that stroke knowledge and awareness, which could provide earlier presentation to the emergency unit for timely treatment onset, are still low in urban Northern Germany but may decisively be increased by educational campaigns.© 2012 The Authors. International Journal of Stroke © 2012 World Stroke Organization.

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