 One of the best weapons in the fight to prevent a stroke is education. That was what organizers and physicians at Pikeville Medical Center's Stroke Awareness event in downtown Pikeville today hoped to convey. Dozens of people turned out for free screenings and information at the event and speakers at the event hoped those who attended left better prepared to prevent a stroke or to prevent long-term damage in the event of a stroke. A stroke is such a disabling disease and also deadly is the fifth leading cause of the death. So we want to make sure that people understand that there are risk factors that causes the stroke and if you control those risk factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, smoking cessation, obesity, you know those things if you control it you can actually prevent a stroke before it happens. There's a higher incidence of stroke it's called a stroke belt that involves Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia and Virginia and all these states and there's a higher incidence of strokes in these states and it's called a stroke belt and unfortunately we have higher incidence of diabetes, higher incidence of high blood pressure, high incidence of smoking, tobacco and high incidence of lack of activity, cholesterol. All these risk factors put together make us at a higher risk for having strokes. Our sole purpose for this stroke awareness day is a education, a education, a education. That way we can prevent strokes from happening and let people know that if there is a stroke use the acronym fast and call an ambulance 911 do not use your own private vehicle and come down to Pikeville Medical Center emergency room because we are stroke ready. Both Dr. Goody and Dr. Ahmed said the most important factors in dealing with a stroke are education and time. More information about strokes and about PMC's primary stroke center can be found at www.pikevillehospital.org. Reporting in Pikeville for EKB News, I'm Chris Anderson.