Knowledge of Stroke Risk Factors, Warning Symptoms, and Treatment Among an Australian Urban Population

Background and Purpose— Reduction in the risk of stroke and increase in the speed of hospital presentation after the onset of stroke both depend on the level of knowledge of stroke in the general population. The aim of the present study was to assess baseline knowledge regarding stroke risk factors, symptoms, treatment, and information resources. Methods— A community-based telephone interview survey was conducted in the Newcastle urban area in Australia. A total of 1278 potential participants between the ages of 18 to 80 were selected at random from an electronic telephone directory. A trained telephone interviewer conducted a telephone survey using the Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI) program. Results— A total of 822 participants completed the telephone interview. Six hundred three participants (73.4%) correctly identified the brain as the affected organ in stroke. The most common risk factors for stroke identified by respondents were smoking (identified by 324 [39.4%]) and stress (identif...