ABSTRACT BACKGROUND:

Stroke is the second leading cause of death in Brazil and the main cause of disability. Inability to identify alarm signals causes delays in seeking emergency services, thereby leading to a worse prognosis.

OBJECTIVES:

To assess the population's knowledge of how to recognize and prevent stroke.

DESIGN AND SETTING:

Prospective cross-sectional study on data derived from a questionnaire that was administered during the 2016 World Stroke Campaign, launched in the city of São Paulo, Brazil.

METHODS:

Data on 806 interviewees were evaluated using descriptive statistics and univariate and multivariate analyses.

RESULTS:

Among all the interviewees, 52.1% knew how to conceptualize stroke; 70.07% knew someone who had suffered a stroke; and 29.03% listed three or more risk factors. Only 27.5% mentioned controlling high blood pressure as a preventive measure. In the event of witnessing a stroke, 57.8% would call the emergency service and 2.9% would check the timing. Less educated individuals were 5.6 times more likely (95% confidence interval, CI 3.45-9.02) to have poor knowledge of stroke, compared with the more educated group. Knowing someone who had had a stroke reduced the chances of not knowing the terms relating to the disease (odds ratio, OR = 0.56; 95% CI 0.4-0.78).

CONCLUSIONS:

Despite the severity and prevalence of stroke, the population still has little information on this disease. In this context, the importance of mounting campaigns to improve prevention and treatment and to contribute to healthcare policies becomes evident.