Australian public's awareness of stroke warning signs improves after national multimedia campaigns

Background and Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine the reach and impact of the National Stroke Foundation (NSF) multimedia stroke warning sign campaigns across Australia. Methods: A total of 12 439 surveys were performed across 6 states during 6 years on random state–weighted samples of Australians ≥40 years old. Results: Awareness of stroke advertising increased 31% to 50% between 2004 and 2010 (P<0.001), as did the unprompted recall of ≥2 most common stroke warning signs 20% to 53% (P<0.001). Awareness of stroke advertising was independently associated with recalling ≥2 common signs (adjusted odds ratio=1.88, 95% confidence interval [1.74–2.04]; P