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.

Cardiovascular disease prevention program for Chile

World Congress of Cardiology Report - Fifty-five percent of the Chilean adult population is at risk of a cardiovascular event with a high rate of morbidity and mortality affecting mainly a productive population, between 35 and 74 years of age. This risk is 1.4 times greater for men.

5 Sep 2006

How effective is continued Plavix therapy in patients undergoing a repeat stent procedure?

Clopidogrel (Plavix) is used worldwide in millions of patients after placement of coronary artery stents. Sales of the drug exceed 5 billion US dollars.

5 Sep 2006

One of the largest Japanese cardiovascular trials confirms angiotensin receptor blockade protects people who have a wide range of cardiovascular diseases

The first controlled large-scale intervention trial of angiotensin receptor blockade in Japanese patients has confirmed that the cardiovascular protective effects of the drug valsartan is greater than to those seen with other therapies giving the same level of blood pressure control.

5 Sep 2006

Overweight toddlers will be obese 12 year olds

Researchers in the U.S. who conducted a collaborative study involving the National Institute for Health and a number of academic institutions, say they have found that children who are overweight as toddlers or pre-schoolers are more likely to be overweight or obese in early adolescence.

5 Sep 2006

New drug improves blood flow in diseased arteries

A new drug has been shown to improve blood flow in diseased arteries, reducing the risk of high blood pressure and heart attacks, a Monash University study published today reveals.

4 Sep 2006

Eastern Europe, Middle East has highest rates of cardiovascular disease deaths

Eastern European and Middle Eastern patients with diseased blood vessels have the highest rates of heart attacks and strokes, and the highest rates of death from those conditions, compared with similar patients in other regions of the world.

4 Sep 2006

More fat people than starving in the world

At an International Congress on Obesity, in Sydney, Australia, chairman Professor Paul Zimmet has said that obesity is no longer a problem limited to America and other developed countries but has reached the scale of a global epidemic.

4 Sep 2006

Mood swings and depression appear to be related to cardiovascular disease

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and affective disorders are both very prevalent in the general population.

1 Sep 2006

The latest big thing - Obesity!

As the obesity fanfare continues researchers in Britain say a person's body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference are the easiest ways of predicting health risks due to excess weight, particularly amongst older men.

31 Aug 2006

Celebrex shown to reduce incidence of potentially pre-malignant colorectal polyps

An international team of scientists reports that a single 400-milligram daily dose of celecoxib, commonly called Celebrex. and manufactured by Pfizer, significantly reduced recurrence of adenomas, or pre-malignant colon tumors - within three years of previous adenoma removal.

30 Aug 2006

Study aims to lower diabetes risk in youth

As schools across the country reopen their doors this fall, hundreds of sixth graders in 42 middle schools will begin taking part in a study sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

30 Aug 2006

FDA looks at clinical emergency research when informed consent cannot be obtained

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is taking a close look at the implementation of its 1996 regulation, 21 CFR 50.24, which allows clinical emergency research when informed consent cannot be obtained.

29 Aug 2006

Boosting enzyme may reverse Alzheimer's

New research by scientists at Columbia University suggests that boosting the function of a certain enzyme may provide a promising strategy for battling Alzheimer's disease, and possibly reversing its effects.

28 Aug 2006

Women's Health Network petitions FDA to halt sales of estrogen, testosterone combination treatments

The National Women's Health Network has petitioned FDA to stop sales of Solvay's Estratest and Breckenridge Pharmaceuticals' Syntest, which are estrogen-testosterone combination therapies used to treat menopause-associated hot flashes, until they are proven safe and effective, Reuters reports.

24 Aug 2006

No matter how you do it tobacco is a killer

Regardless of how you do it, smoked or chewed, firsthand or secondhand, it seems all kinds of tobacco cause heart attacks.

21 Aug 2006

$1M Myers Fellowship brings US research techniques to Melbourne

The Howard Florey Institute's inaugural Allan and Maria Myers Travel Fellowship has been awarded to world renowned neuroscientist, Prof Gerard Shaw, from the McKnight Brain Institute, University of Florida College of Medicine.

20 Aug 2006

Strokes more likely to occur early morning and early evening

Japanese scientists have found that strokes are most likely to occur during certain two-hour periods; one in the morning and the other in the evening.

20 Aug 2006

Chinese men harming wives by smoking too much

Chinese men are putting their wives at increased risk of long-term illness and early death by smoking, finds a study in this week's British Medical Journal.

17 Aug 2006

Internal body clock dictates timing of different types of stroke

The internal body clock, or circadian rhythm, seems to influence the timing of different types of stroke, suggests research published ahead of print in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery and Psychiatry.

17 Aug 2006

FDA approves Plavix for STEMI heart attacks

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today approved the use of Plavix (clopidogrel bisulfate) for patients who have had a type of heart attack called acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), who are not going to have coronary artery repair (angioplasty).

17 Aug 2006