Dear Editor: I see the devastating consequences of stroke on nearly a daily basis. As a New Jersey neurosurgeon and chairman of the American Stroke Association’ (a division of the American Heart Association) Task Force on Stroke, I urge everyone in the Garden State to learn the warning signs of stroke. During May, Stroke Awareness Month, find out your personal risk for stroke by taking advantage of the American Stroke Association’s free community stroke screening program called Stroke Alert! A stroke can strike anyone, at any age. As healthcare professionals, we want the opportunity to provide early treatment to stroke victims, but according to the American Stroke Association, a division of the American Heart Association, 43 percent of Americans do not know a single warning sign of stroke. And studies have shown that most stroke patients, wait, on average, 22 hours to get help. Stroke is a medical emergency requiring urgent, immediate attention. As a result, only 5 percent of stroke patients are receiving early acute treatment for stroke. In 1996, the Food and Drug Administration approved the use of tissue plasminogen activator, or t-PA, as a treatment for stroke. As a clot-busting drug, t-PA holds enormous potential for the treatment of ischemic stroke, which is responsible for as much as 70 to 80 percent of the estimated 750,000 strokes each year. The American Stroke Association estimates that t-PA could be used in 400,000 or more stroke cases each year to save lives, reverse paralysis and reduce disability. Currently, however, t-PA is being used in fewer than 6,000 cases annually. The public must know the warning signs of stroke and treat stroke as a medical emergency. Know the warning signs of stroke and learn your risk. From May 20 to 26, the American Stroke Association will partner with more than 115 New Jersey hospitals, health departments and other health sites to offer the public Stroke Alert! — a free community stroke screening program. For a Stroke Alert! screening location near you, call 1-888-988-2179. Last year close to 12,500 individuals in a five-state area received free stroke screenings through the program and almost half, 47 percent, were found to be at increased risk for stroke. Are you at risk for stroke? During Stroke Awareness Month, find out your risk for stroke. For more information about the American Stroke Association Stroke Alert! program or a stroke screening location near you, call 1-888-988-2179. Richard M. Hodosh, MD, Chairman American Stroke Association Task Force on Stroke Neurosurgeon and Director of Neurosciences Atlanta Health System