Sen. Chris Murphy is in the hospital after having a stroke on Saturday, his office said.
The 53-year-old Connecticut Democrat was at his son’s hockey game when he started feeling numbness in his arm. “Yesterday afternoon, Senator Murphy started experiencing numbness in his arm while at his son’s hockey game,” his chief of staff, Allison Herwitt, said in a statement on Sunday, according to The Associated Press.
He was taken to a local hospital, where doctors found he’d had a stroke. His office didn’t say which hospital it was. He was later moved to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore for more monitoring, ABC News reported.
Herwitt said he is responding well to treatment.
“The doctors are encouraged by his progress, he is awake and alert, and we are optimistic he will make a full recovery,” she said.
His office hasn’t said what kind of stroke he had or how long he’ll stay in the hospital.
The Warning Signs
Numbness in the arm is on the CDC’s list of stroke symptoms. The CDC says to watch for:
- Sudden numbness or weakness in the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body
- Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or difficulty understanding speech
- Sudden trouble seeing
- Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or lack of coordination
- Sudden severe headache with no known cause
If you or someone else has any of these, the CDC says to call 911 right away.
The B.E. F.A.S.T. Test
The CDC also uses a quick check called B.E. F.A.S.T.:
- Balance: Is the person off-balance or dizzy?
- Eyes: Are they having trouble seeing normally?
- Face: Ask them to smile. Does one side of the face droop?
- Arms: Ask them to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward?
- Speech: Ask them to repeat a simple phrase. Is it slurred or strange?
- Time: If you see any of these signs, call 911 right away.
Stroke is a leading cause of death in the U.S. and a major cause of serious disability for adults, according to the CDC.
