Public release date: 13-Mar-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Mark Wheeler mwheeler@mednet.ucla.edu 310-794-2265 University of California - Los Angeles When someone has a stroke, time equals brain. The longer a stroke is left untreated, the more brain tissue is lost. Since the only proven treatment a clot-busting drug works in less than half of patients, stroke physicians had high hopes for a mechanical device that could travel through the blocked blood vessel to retrieve or break up the clot, restoring blood flow to the brain. But in a recently completed multi-site trial in which UCLA served as the clinical coordinating center, researchers found there was no overall recovery benefit to patients treated with clot-removal (embolectomy) devices, compared with standard post-stroke care, which includes monitoring blood pressure and ensuring the brain is receiving oxygen. The study also found that using brain scans to identify which patients might be the best candidates for embolectomy did not lead to better outcomes for those patients. The study was sponsored by the National Institutes of Health, and the results appeared in the March 7 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine. Treating an acute stroke is always a race against the clock, … Continue reading →

Public release date: 13-Mar-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: George Stamatis george.stamatis@uhhospitals.org 216-844-3667 University Hospitals Case Medical Center University Hospitals (UH) Case Medical Center has become the first hospital in Northeast Ohio and 19th in the nation to achieve The Joint Commission's standards for Comprehensive Stroke Center Certification, joining an elite group of providers focused on complex stroke care. Comprehensive stroke centers are recognized as industry leaders and are responsible for setting the national agenda in all aspects of stroke care and prevention. The recognition comes from The Joint Commission, the nation's oldest and largest standards-setting and accrediting body in health care, and the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. Comprehensive Stroke Center Certification recognizes those hospitals that have state-of-the-art infrastructure, staff and training to receive and treat patients with the most complex strokes. UH Case Medical Center underwent a rigorous onsite review in November. Joint Commission experts reviewed UH Case Medical Center's compliance with the Comprehensive Stroke Center standards and requirements including advanced imaging capabilities, 24/7 availability of specialized treatments, and staff with the unique education and competencies to care for complex stroke patients. "By achieving this advanced certification, University Hospitals Case Medical Center has thoroughly demonstrated the … Continue reading →

Of the various effects that a stroke can have on a person, one of the most common is paralysis of one side of the body needless to say, this has a severe impact on the victims ability to walk. Treatment often consists of therapists retraining the persons body by repeatedly lifting their legs, guiding them through a proper walking pattern. The EU-funded CORBYS project aims to make such therapy easier for everyone involved by using a powered orthosis to move the patients legs in response to feedback from their brain. Currently still in development, the robotic CORBYS device consists of a wheeled platform, at the front of which is a sort of exoskeleton that attaches to the patients legs. A pivoting attachment at the waist of that orthosis links it with the rest of the platform, but allows the patient to turn easily. In the first phase of treatment, however, patients wouldnt use the platform. Instead, they would have sensors placed on key points of their body, then walk on a treadmill. After observing their stroke-altered gait, a therapist would step in and manually guide their legs through a corrected walking pattern. Feedback from the sensors would be used to … Continue reading →

Rate of brain hemorrhage in stroke patients given tPA isnt meaningfully higher Newswise ANN ARBOR, Mich. Millions of Americans take aspirin or other drugs every day to reduce their risk of heart attacks or other problems caused by blood clots. But when one of them suffers a stroke caused by a clot in their brain, some emergency teams might hesitate to give a powerful clot-busting medication called tPA -- for fear that the combination of drugs might cause dangerous brain bleeding. Now, a University of Michigan Stroke Program study suggests this fear may be unfounded, at least for most patients taking common clot-preventing therapies. The study is based on data from 830 stroke patients who received tPA at any of the 28 Michigan hospitals that took part in two U-M-led studies. Just under half of them were on aspirin or clopidogrel (sold as Plavix) before they had their strokes. After adjusting for patients other characteristics, the researchers found no significant difference in the rate of brain bleeding seen on the patients brain scans -- even low-level bleeding that didnt cause symptoms. The results, published in the current issue of Academic Emergency Medicine, should help reassure emergency teams and patients alike … Continue reading →

Public release date: 12-Mar-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Kara Gavin kegavin@umich.edu 734-764-2220 University of Michigan Health System ANN ARBOR, Mich. Millions of Americans take aspirin or other drugs every day to reduce their risk of heart attacks or other problems caused by blood clots. But when one of them suffers a stroke caused by a clot in their brain, some emergency teams might hesitate to give a powerful clot-busting medication called tPA -- for fear that the combination of drugs might cause dangerous brain bleeding. Now, a University of Michigan Stroke Program study suggests this fear may be unfounded, at least for most patients taking common clot-preventing therapies. The study is based on data from 830 stroke patients who received tPA at any of the 28 Michigan hospitals that took part in two U-M-led studies. Just under half of them were on aspirin or clopidogrel (sold as Plavix) before they had their strokes. After adjusting for patients' other characteristics, the researchers found no significant difference in the rate of brain bleeding seen on the patients' brain scans -- even low-level bleeding that didn't cause symptoms. The results, published in the current issue of Academic Emergency Medicine, should … Continue reading →

In the UK strokes are becoming an increasing threat to our health. Every year an estimated 150,000 suffer from one and although seen as a disease only affecting the elderly, children and young people can also be victims. However, treatment has continued to improve thanks to strong research in the area and specialist consults knowing how to act fast when a patient is diagnosed. Now technology can have a part to play, as proved by the Cumbria and Lancashire Telestroke Network. In 2007 a national initiative was launched that said all patients should be able to access thrombolysis treatment which dissolves clots in the brain causing a stroke 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Although the intention was sound, not every area of the country had the facilities to make it happen. In Cumbria and Lancashire, only one in eight of our hospitals were able to offer the treatment and on a Monday to Friday office hours basis, meaning there were an awful lot of patients who could not access the service, said Kathy Blacker, director of the cardiac and stroke network in the region. We may have had the specialists but spread over such a large county … Continue reading →