Released: 10/30/2013 6:00 PM EDT Source Newsroom: Mayo Clinic Newswise LEBANON, NH - For someone having a stroke, minutes can make the difference between life and death. Studies have shown that prompt access to a vascular neurologist vastly reduces mortality or the long-term disabling effects of a stroke. Yet, many hospitals, particularly in rural regions, do not have a stroke specialist or are unable to provide around-the-clock stroke coverage. To address this problem, Dartmouth-Hitchcock (D-H), in collaboration with Mayo Clinic, has created a telestroke program, offering participating hospitals across New Hampshire and Vermont 24/7 access to specialists. In telestroke care, specialists at a distance use videoconferencing technology to communicate with the emergency room team, examine the patient, interpret the brain images, confirm the diagnosis, and provide recommendations just as if they were at the bedside. This thorough evaluation determines the most-immediate and best treatment plan for that patient. Additionally, research has shown that telestroke programs improve outcomes, reduce patient risks, decrease ambulance transport, shorten hospital stays, and lower costs through more timely and accurate diagnosis. Telehealth is critical to creating a sustainable health system that focuses on population health, value, and payment models that reward high-quality care, said James N. … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 30-Oct-2013 Contact: Meng Zhao eic@nrren.org 86-138-049-98773 Neural Regeneration Research The incidence of shoulder pain post stroke was high. Thus, it is clinically significant to study the onset characteristics and pain management. Yi Zhu and colleagues from Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, China retrospectively investigated the characteristics of hemiplegic shoulder pain post stroke in patients from Nanjing, China, and discussed risk factors for hemiplegic shoulder pain post stroke and curative effects of different pain management treatment methods. The researchers found that involvement of the posterior limb of internal capsule and early onset of shoulder pain can reduce the efficacy of pain management, while pain-related education before treatment and early pain regression increase the efficacy of pain management. In addition, diagnosis type of shoulder pain can influence the efficacy of pain management. Comprehensive rehabilitation can alleviate shoulder pain, and electroacupuncture based on the underlying physical therapy for shoulder subluxation pain is more efficiently. These results, published in the Neural Regeneration Research (Vol. 8, No. 25, 2013) can provide reference for diagnosis, prevention and treatment of hemiplegic shoulder pain post stroke. ### Article: " Pain management of hemiplegic shoulder pain post stroke in patients from Nanjing, China " by … Continue reading →

By Ryan Cornell WINCHESTER -- A new form of ultrasound therapy being tested in clinics across the world could lead to the next major breakthrough in treating strokes. The therapy involves placing a ClotBust-ER headframe on the head of someone who has suffered a stroke. The device, shaped like a crown, sends sonogram pulses toward a blood clot while an anticoagulant known as tPA (tissue plasminogen activator) infuses. Doctors believe the pulses could help penetrate and break up the clot. Because the treatment is in its clinical trial phases and is a double-blind study, the doctors don't even know whether the sonogram pulses are sent out or not, but one stroke patient undergoing the tests in Winchester, 79-year-old Dr. Jean Patrick, has gone through one miraculous transformation. The morning of Oct. 23 started out like any other for Patrick. She woke up, had her breakfast and headed to Mountain View Christian Academy in Winchester, where she had started teaching music instrument lessons that month. She said good morning to Andy Fahey, an administrator at the school, and started teaching the lessons. Patrick said she had finished playing the recorder and had moved on to teach her fourth grade student how … Continue reading →

EXTON, Pa., Oct. 31, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- ViroPharma Incorporated (VPHM) reported today its financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2013. Net sales were $113 million for the third quarter ended September 30, 2013, as compared to $91 million in the same three months of 2012. The increase was primarily driven by growth in U.S. Cinryze sales. Cinryze U.S. sales of $102 million during the quarter reflect true patient demand as channel inventory levels remain unchanged from the prior quarter. "The third quarter of 2013 represented another extremely strong period of growth and positive momentum across our entire organization," stated Vincent Milano, ViroPharma's chief executive officer. "We continue to generate strong growth in our commercial business, notably led by the acceleration of Cinryze demand here in the United States. Our pipeline also continues to advance, establishing a number of important data points over the next several months." Our GAAP net income was $4 million in the third quarter of 2013 compared to GAAP net loss of $5 million in the third quarter of 2012. For the nine months ended September 30, 2013, GAAP net loss was $59 million compared to $10 million of GAAP net income during the … Continue reading →