AUGUSTA, Ga. ()- May is Stroke Awareness month.

A time dedicated to raising awareness about stroke prevention, recognition, and treatment.

And this week, Piedmont Augusta is hosting a community event that will help you learn what signs to look for.

Most strokes occur in the brain when a blood vessel is blocked by a clot or bursts.

This is seen in middle-aged people and older, but doctors have seen in ages as young as six months old.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 600 thousand out of nearly 800 thousand who suffer strokes in the U-S are first timers.

And there are two common types of strokes you should be aware of.

“The two main types are a hemorrhagic stroke or a bleeding type and ischemic stroke or the blockage type. I’ve seen both types. We see it very commonly. The most common type of the hemorrhagic stroke is a ruptured aneurysm, which is a very dangerous cause. Patients have no sign that they may harbor an aneurysm. The skimming stroke is actually more common, occurring in about 85% of strokes. And those result from a blockage of an important vessel in the brain,” said Piedmont’s Dr. Cargill Alleyne.

He also mentioned why Be was added to the acronym F.A.S.T.

“We recognized the importance of loss of balance in the constellation of stroke symptoms and then the eye symptoms that can sometimes see results. So patients can have loss of vision in one eye or both eyes or blurriness of vision. And they can also become very unsteady after a stroke, particularly in the back of the brain. We call the pulse your circulation.”

This Thursday the hospital is hosting a free stroke prevention awareness event.

It’s from 11am until 1pm on the front lawn of the main hospital downtown.

Photojournalist: Dania Alawir