BACKGROUND The development of acute stroke therapy has proven to be a daunting task, with a few successful and many unsuccessful trials. New strategies need to be considered to enhance the chances for success in future trials. SUMMARY OF REVIEW The third Stroke Therapy Academic Industry Roundtable (STAIR) conference focused on issues related to increasing the percentage of acute stroke patien...

Acute stroke is increasingly recognised as one of the leading factors of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Its economical burden is among the highest of all diseases. Ischaemic stroke is by far the most frequent subtype of acute stroke. More than 80% of all stroke patients suffer from focal ischaemia [Bonita, 1992]. Over the past decades, acute stroke has increasingly been recognised as a medi...

OBJECTIVE It is unknown whether racial differences in exposure to acute precipitants of stroke, specifically infection, contribute to racial disparities in stroke mortality. METHODS Among participants in the nationally representative Health and Retirement Study with linked Medicare data (1991-2007), we conducted a case-crossover study employing within-person comparisons to study racial/ethnic...

OBJECTIVE To study the workload of and use of acute intervention within an established acute stroke service, the Calgary Stroke Programme (CSP). METHODS Prospective record of all acute referrals, diagnoses, and management decisions over a 4 month period. RESULTS The CSP received 572 referrals (median: 32 per week), 88% of which were made between 7 am and midnight. Of the 427 patients seen i...

The concept of using t-PA for the treatment of acute ischemic stroke became a reality in the mid-1980s when research began via the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) Pilot Studies Program. Indeed, the first patient with acute ischemic stroke treated with t-PA in a clinical trial setting was performed by members of the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Stroke team...

To the Editor We greatly enjoyed reading the recently published article by Kim et al. (1). The authors found that the serum D-dimer levels were significantly associated with left atrial enlargement in anticoagulation-naïve patients with acute ischemic stroke and non-valvular atrial fibrillation. A number of studies have indicated the role of D-dimer in the stroke diagnosis, progression, and mor...

Arterial ischemic stroke (AIS) in adults is considered a serious health threat and requires urgent medical treatment. Prompt diagnosis allows the therapeutic option of thrombolysis within the time window of 3 to 6 hours after first symptoms. Alternatively, early anti-platelet therapy is effective in improving the outcome after stroke. The incidence of pediatric AIS range from 2 to 5 per 100 000...

Acute ischemic stroke is a leading cause of death and major disability worldwide. Approximately 50% strokes are caused by atherothrombotic occlusion the cerebral arteries, antiplatelets mainstay secondary preventative treatment. Aspirin beneficial if given early, short‐term treatment using aspirin clopidogrel increasingly used for patients with intracranial atherosclerotic disease, minor stroke...

'Brain' attack' is a new term to describe the acute presentation of stroke which emphasises the need for urgent action. The article describes the basis for this new approach to acute stroke treatment. Rational treatment requires individual causes of stroke to be identified early and treatment targeted at the mechanism. Acute stroke treatment aims to preserve the ischaemic penumbra, protect neur...

INTRODUCTION The accurate identification of acute stroke cases is an essential requirement of hospital-based stroke registries. We determined the accuracy of acute stroke diagnoses in Michigan hospitals participating in a prototype of the Paul Coverdell National Acute Stroke Registry. METHODS From May through November 2002, registry teams (ie, nurse and physician) from 15 Michigan hospitals p...