Stroke News and Research

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A stroke is a medical emergency. Strokes happen when blood flow to your brain stops. Within minutes, brain cells begin to die. There are two kinds of stroke. The more common kind, called ischemic stroke, is caused by a blood clot that blocks or plugs a blood vessel in the brain. The other kind, called hemorrhagic stroke, is caused by a blood vessel that breaks and bleeds into the brain. "Mini-strokes" or transient ischemic attacks (TIAs), occur when the blood supply to the brain is briefly interrupted.

State roundup: Texas disability fight; rights of fetus asserted in Neb.

For Milla Powell, a 12-year-old from Austin with cerebral palsy, the little things make all the difference. Massage therapy to ease her tightened muscles. Recreational programs, in which therapists take her into the community to help her build her social skills. Music therapy to help Milla, who cannot speak, connect without words. But services like these are on the chopping block for thousands of Texans with disabilities -; another casualty of the significant budget cuts that state lawmakers passed in May.

3 Sep 2011

New research puts an unexpected twist on how mitochondria divide within cells

New research from the University of California, Davis, and the University of Colorado at Boulder puts an unexpected twist on how mitochondria, the energy-generating structures within cells, divide.

3 Sep 2011

Blocked blood vessels linked to familiar signs of aging

Many common signs of aging, such as shaking hands, stooped posture and walking slower, may be due to tiny blocked vessels in the brain that can't be detected by current technology.

2 Sep 2011

African-Americans even outside 'stroke belt' face higher risk of death

African-Americans and country folk outside the so-called "stroke belt" are at higher risk for stroke death than other populations, a large new study finds.

2 Sep 2011

Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center receives ACCF's GWTG Gold award

Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center is one of only 167 hospitals nationwide to receive the American College of Cardiology Foundation's NCDR ACTION Registry-GWTG (Get with the Guidelines) Gold Performance Achievement Award for 2011.

2 Sep 2011

Two ROC trials evaluate new strategies for CPR following cardiac arrest

Researchers with the Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium, which includes the University of Alabama at Birmingham, report Sept. 1 in the New England Journal of Medicine on the first two large-scale ROC trials. Both trials were evaluating new strategies for cardiopulmonary resuscitation following cardiac arrest.

2 Sep 2011

AAN calls all high school coaches, athletes and parents to learn signs of sports concussion

The American Academy of Neurology, the leading group of neurologists dedicated to managing sports concussion, is issuing a call to all youth and high school coaches, athletes and parents to learn the signs of sports concussion and to know when a player must leave the game.

2 Sep 2011

UTHealth Phase I trial: Bone marrow stem cell therapy feasible, safe for acute stroke patients

Using a patient's own bone marrow stem cells to treat acute stroke is feasible and safe, according to the results of a ground-breaking Phase I trial at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

2 Sep 2011

Stroke hospitalization rates in adolescents and young adults increase up to 37%

Ischemic stroke hospitalization rates in adolescents and young adults aged 15 to 44 increased up to 37% between 1995 and 2008 according to a study conducted by researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

2 Sep 2011

Valproic acid may increase survival for brain tumor patients

New research suggests brain tumor patients who take the seizure drug valproic acid on top of standard treatment may live longer than people who take other kinds of epilepsy medications to control seizures.

2 Sep 2011

Princeton researchers match images of brain activity with complex thought

In an effort to understand what happens in the brain when a person reads or considers such abstract ideas as love or justice, Princeton researchers have for the first time matched images of brain activity with categories of words related to the concepts a person is thinking about. The results could lead to a better understanding of how people consider meaning and context when reading or thinking.

2 Sep 2011

Longer CPR may do more harm than good: Study

A new study reveals that providing CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) for a longer period of time could actually harm certain patients. “We found that extra CPR didn't help and, in fact, in some patients it was not a good thing. It would make it worse,” said Dr. Ian Stiell, lead author of a paper published in the Sept. 1 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. “Our study showed that there's no reason to do two minutes of CPR or to delay defibrillation.”

31 Aug 2011

Aerobic exercise best for belly fat reduction: Study

A new study has shown that the best type of exercise to burn unhealthy belly fat is aerobic exercise. The results showed that people who did aerobics for eight months lost about 2.5 square inches of belly fat, as measured on a CT scan. That's about 1.5 times as much as people who did a combination of aerobic exercise and weight lifting, and about 20 times as much as those who only lifted weights.

31 Aug 2011

Microvisk introduces unique handheld device which monitors blood clotting status

Microvisk Technologies has introduced its unique handheld devices which monitor the blood clotting status of patients to the US market. Showcased at the prestigious American Association for Clinical Chemistry annual conference, the Microvisk devices attracted strong interest from distributors and potential partners ahead of clinical trials in major US medical centres this autumn and product launches in 2012.

31 Aug 2011

AstraZeneca: BRILIQUE receives Class I recommendation from ESC

AstraZeneca today announced BRILIQUE, a new oral antiplatelet medicine, received a Class I recommendation from the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) in the revised "Guidelines for Management of Acute Coronary Syndromes (ACS) in patients presenting without persistent ST-segment elevation."

30 Aug 2011