Overview

• Germany records about 270,000 strokes annually with roughly 66,000 recurrences, prompting renewed outreach on risks beyond older age groups.
• Key early signs in younger people include sudden one-sided weakness or numbness, speech problems, acute vision issues, a very severe new headache, and abrupt dizziness with balance loss.
• The FAST check—smile, arm raise, sentence repeat—helps identify symptoms, and any positive result should lead to an immediate 112 call with a clear stroke suspicion.
• The Deutsche Schlaganfall-Hilfe provides a free FAST-Test app for iOS and Android that guides users in German, English and Turkish.
• Experts report that post-hospital care remains fragmented, urging early and ongoing rehabilitation, strict adherence to prescribed medication, a Mediterranean diet, and treatment for depression that affects about one third of survivors.