Viewers 'stroke' concern after ABC news anchor's face drops live on air

A TV news anchor has issued an update after an on-air medical emergency sparked concern from viewers.

Australian Broadcasting Corporation Melbourne star Iskhandar Razak was giving a weather update on Friday (4 September) when part of his face appeared to become paralysed.

The TV newsreader was live on-air when he suddenly started talking from the side of his mouth and has since revealed that he thought he may be having a stroke.

His medical emergency didn’t go unnoticed by viewers who took to social media to voice their concerns and asking if he was OK.

However, Razak has since shared an update on Instagram, confirming that he didn't have a stroke and has been diagnosed with Bell’s palsy - a condition that causes sudden temporary weakness of the muscles on one side of the face.

Fans were concerned for Razak during a broadcast (Instagram/@abcinmelbourne)

In a clip shared online, he said: “Good news, it’s not a stroke but as you can see my face isn’t really reacting as it normally would.

“There’s some paralysation of this side of the face at the moment.”

He thanked viewers for reaching out to see if he was OK and said that a visit to the emergency room had confirmed it was ‘nothing too serious’.

Razak explained: “What it is, is Bell's palsy, inflammation of the ear through, or an ear nerve that's connected up and it means this is slower to react.

'I have been able to force myself to make it a bit better when I've had to work.

“But keen people have noticed that this eye, more than anything, is really taking its time to shut.

“So I am going to take a few days off, and hopefully this will sort itself out with medication and treatment in a few weeks tops.

“Thank you again to everyone who's asked, and if you see me with an eye patch on the streets, you know why.”

During an earlier appearance on ABC Radio Melbourne Razak shared details on the medical emergency and revealed that he had initially feared it was a stroke.

He's since shared an update confirming he has Bell's palsy (Instagram/@iskraznews)

He explained that he had been feeling unwell in the run-up to the incident and then slept badly the night before.

He said: “I was aware something was different and so the first real inclination that I thought something is probably askew was about 3.45pm, when I was on air with Charlie Pickering and that's when I felt like I was talking out of the side of my mouth and felt a bit different.

“At the same time, I was thinking, the worst thing is that something's really wrong here and it could be a stroke.

“But I'm chatting away and no one's noticing a thing. Everyone's listening. No one's made any comment that my face looks different. I'm completely coherent.

“But when I got home that night, my wife, who is a GP, looked at me straight away and said, ''half of your face has got a droop going on''.

“I couldn't make a bubble with my face because I'd lost that muscle connection.”

Raznak said medics had told him that a full recovery typically takes between three to six months.

While he recovers, he said he’ll be taking a ‘few weeks’ off work.