By Cristina Flores (KUTV) Since 2009, Utah families with autistic children have lobbied hard on Capitol Hill, to convince Utah lawmakers to pass an insurance mandate that would require insurance companies to cover autism treatment. Instead, what those families got was the Utah Medicaid Autism Waiver - a pilot program that will enroll 200 families of autistic children. Mirella Peterson, President of the Utah Autism Coalition said the legislature's solution is "completely inappropriate" on many levels. First, the pilot program will only help 200 families - there are some 18,000 autistic children in Utah she said. Second: Peterson thinks lawmakers will falsely pat themselves on the back for helping autistic parents. Christine Passey will enroll her 4 year-old daughter Skylynn, who currently requires 800 dollar-per-week therapy. The Passey's can't afford that expense all year long, which breaks Christine's heart because therapy clearly helps her daughter. "To be honest I am not thrilled about having to apply to a government program for help for my daughter but she needs the help," she said. The Passeys have health insurance but as is the case with other families, it does not cover autism treatment. 32 States have an insurance mandate for autism treatment … Continue reading →

Public release date: 2-Oct-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Cathy Campbell cathy@canadianstrokenetwork.ca 613-852-2303 Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada Improvements to the diagnosis and screening of sleep apnea are critical to stroke prevention, according to new stroke care guidelines released today at the Canadian Stroke Congress. Obstructive sleep apnea, a disorder where the flow of air to the brain pauses or decreases during sleep, is both a risk factor for stroke and a complication following stroke, according to the Canadian Best Practice Recommendations for Stroke Care. Among the general population sleep apnea increases the likelihood of having a stroke, even after controlling for other stroke risk factors, such as high blood pressure and diabetes, researchers say. At absolute minimum, four per cent of men and two per cent of women have serious sleep apnea, says Dr. Brian Murray, an associate professor of neurology and sleep medicine at the University of Toronto. Dr. Murray adds that clinically significant forms of the disorder affect more than 10 per cent of the population. "There are ways to prevent sleep apnea from occurring," says Dr. Murray. "Keep your body weight low as obesity is a major contributor to sleep apnea; avoid medications … Continue reading →

Public release date: 2-Oct-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Cathy Campbell cathy@canadianstrokenetwork.ca 613-852-2303 Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada Stroke care has improved considerably in Alberta following the implementation of the Alberta Provincial Stroke Strategy (APSS), leading to more targeted patient care and fewer health complications, according to a study presented today at the Canadian Stroke Congress. Nearly 97 per cent of stroke patients received a brain-imaging scan during their admission to hospital in 2011, compared to 88 per cent before the APSS was implemented in 2006. "The faster a patient has access to brain imaging, the faster they get the right diagnosis and the right treatment," says lead author Dr. Thomas Jeerakathil of the University of Alberta. "We are enhancing care for stroke through the Provincial Stroke Strategy and it's paying off throughout the province." Researchers analyzed more than 4,500 patient records and found an increase of 18 per cent in the number of patients receiving swallowing screens after stroke -- from 38.2 per cent before the APSS to 56.6 per cent at the peak of the APSS's success. Conducting swallowing screens reduces the risk of aspiration pneumonia, a complication caused when a patient who is unable … Continue reading →

PRINCETON, N.J. & NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (BMY) and Pfizer Inc. (PFE) today announced that the reductions in stroke or systemic embolism, major bleeding and mortality demonstrated with ELIQUIS compared to warfarin in the ARISTOTLE trial were consistent across a wide range of stroke and bleeding risk scores in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation. These results of a subanalysis from the ARISTOTLE clinical trial were published today in The Lancet. Stroke and bleeding risk were based on the CHADS2, CHA2DS2VASc, and HAS-BLED scores, which are patient assessment tools used by physicians to help predict the risk of stroke and of bleeding in patients with atrial fibrillation. Physicians can use these risk scores to help inform decisions regarding the selection of anticoagulation therapy. The ARISTOTLE trial evaluated the efficacy and safety of ELIQUIS, an investigational compound for the prevention of stroke or systemic embolism in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation, compared with warfarin. This subanalysis evaluated data from 18,201 patients in the ARISTOTLE trial, based on patients risk of stroke (CHADS2 1, 2, or 3, or CHA2DS2VASc 1, 2, or 3) or risk of bleeding (HAS-BLED 0-1, 2, or 3). Across prespecified and post-hoc analyses that evaluated CHADS2, CHA2DS2VASc, … Continue reading →