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.

Telemetry captures stroke patients' cardiac problems

To detect "silent" or new cardiac abnormalities, all patients hospitalized for stroke should receive continuous cardiac rhythm monitoring (telemetry) for at least the first 24 hours after the stroke is detected, according to a Loyola University Health System study presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2006.

24 Feb 2006

Hand-held device brings speech to impaired

A middle-aged woman makes plans over the telephone to get together with a friend, even though she cannot talk after suffering a stroke.

24 Feb 2006

Lifestyle choices help maintain our brain and emotional health

Heart health risk factors and lifestyle choices, such as exercise, learning new things and staying socially connected, are associated with maintaining brain health as we age according to a new report.

24 Feb 2006

New report suggests promising strategies to preserve brain health as people grow older

With the rapid aging of the population, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is intensifying the search for strategies to preserve brain health as people grow older.

24 Feb 2006

Study provides further insight into the molecular control of apoptosis

Researchers at Yale School of Medicine have gained deeper understanding of two members of a family of proteins called caspases that play a key role in promoting apoptosis, a process in which the cell responds to external signals by essentially committing suicide.

23 Feb 2006

Genetic variations help predict risk for salt-induced high blood pressure

Researchers led by UVa Health System pathologist Robin Felder, Ph.D., have demonstrated that looking for several variations of genes that control blood pressure can predict the risk for high blood pressure caused by high levels of salt.

23 Feb 2006

Atherosclerosis MAY be a result of bacteria from gum infection entering the bloodstream

New research is reinforcing the longstanding belief that a connection exists between periodontal disease, or severe gum inflammation, and cardiovascular disease.

23 Feb 2006

40 percent of Americans at moderate risk for heart disease

"Nearly half the heart attacks come without warning, which means we need to do a better job of screening people. This test has that potential."

23 Feb 2006

Heart health and lifestyle help seniors maintain brain power

A comprehensive review says heart health risk factors and lifestyle choices, such as exercise, learning new things and staying socially connected, help keep brains healthy as we grow old.

22 Feb 2006

$Calcium and Vitamin D helps reduce risk of hip fractures in older women$

Calcium and Vitamin D helps reduce risk of hip fractures in older women

Taking calcium and Vitamin D slightly decreased the risk of hip fractures in older women, but not the risk for other types of fractures or for colorectal cancer, according to the latest findings from the federally funded Women's Health Initiative. Additionally, the supplements slightly increased the incidence of kidney stones.

21 Feb 2006

Drug abuse linked to brain hemmorhage in young adults

A fifth of young adults whose blood vessels ruptured inside their brain abused drugs and more than 40 percent had malformed blood vessels, according to a study reported Feb. 17 at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2006 in Kissimmee, FL.

20 Feb 2006

Double whammy of drugs plus ultrasound unblocks arteries

According to a pilot study led by the University of Cincinnati, standard clot-busting medication when used in combination with low-energy ultrasound appears to re-open clogged arteries in stroke patients better than medication alone.

20 Feb 2006

Lower doses of clot-busting drug safer for stroke patients

A Johns Hopkins study has shown that patients treated for a type of stroke caused by bleeding in the brain, or intracerebral hemorrhage, survived more often if given 1 milligram instead of the previously studied 3 milligram dose of the clot-busting drug tissue plasminogen activator (tPA).

19 Feb 2006

Hospitalization of a spouse can harm the wellbeing of his or her partner

In the largest study ever to quantify caregiver burden and the widower effect, researchers found that for people aged 65 and older, hospitalization of a spouse can harm the wellbeing of his or her partner and significantly contribute to that partner's death.

17 Feb 2006

Older asthmatics have increased cancer risk

New research shows that older adults with asthma are at an increased risk for developing cancer, and adults with asthma are twice as likely to suffer from heart disease and other chronic health conditions.

17 Feb 2006

Estrogen therapy does not reduce the risk of heart attack in healthy postmenopausal women

Estrogen therapy does not appear to reduce the risk of heart attack or coronary death in healthy postmenopausal women, although some data suggest a lower coronary heart disease risk in women aged 50 to 59 years, according to a new article in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

16 Feb 2006