Thumbs up to stop that stroke

A SIMPLE thumb check could prevent thousands of strokes every year.

The test, which involves measuring electrical activity from the heart as it passes through the thumb, picks up signs of atrial fibrillation (AF), a leading cause of strokes that affects 1.4million Britons.

AF occurs when the heart’s electrical signals go haywire. It affects older adults, although athletes can develop it too. The heart rate becomes erratic and clots can form and travel to the tiny blood vessels in the brain, triggering a stroke.

The NHS does not screen for AF, although it can be treated with drugs.

A new study of 28,000 people in their 70s by Sweden’s Karolinska Institute found that regular screening with a thumb check cut brain clots by about two per cent – equivalent to 2,000 strokes a year in the UK – by detecting AF.