Clinical Research at the Stanford Stroke Center
LANDMARK ADVANCES POISED TO SHIFT THE PARADIGM OF ACUTE STROKE IMAGING AND TREATMENT
The basic premise underlying acute stroke therapy is to salvage the ischemic region from evolving into infarction, thereby maintaining brain function and improving outcome. The concept of the ischemic penumbra concept envisions not only potentially salvageable or at-risk ischemic tissue but also nonviable tissue known as the “ischemic core”. The Stanford Stroke Center has been at the forefront of developing acute imaging and image processing techniques that provide immediate and accurate visualization of both core and penumbra. These techniques, which involve MRI with diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) and perfusion weighed imaging (PWI), have proven to identify patients who can benefit from both intravenous and intra-arterial therapies well beyond established time frames. More »
STANFORD NEUROLOGISTS PLAY KEY ROLE IN REDEFINITION OF TIA, DETERMINING PROGNOSIS AND OPTIMAL MANAGEMENT
In a 2002 article in the New England Journal of Medicine, Stanford Neurologist Greg Albers, MD, and other cerebrovascular experts called for a revision in the definition of TIA — from time-based (the resolution of symptoms in 24 hours) — to the presence or absence of brain infarction, a tissue-based definition, on neuroimaging. In 2009, the American Stroke Association released a guideline endorsing this change in the definition of TIA. More »
CRISP
The CTP to predict Response to recanalization in Ischemic Stroke Project (CRISP) is a study funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop a practical tool to identify acute stroke patients who are likely to benefit from endovascular therapy.
Stroke is the number one cause of disability in the United States. It is caused by an occlusion of a blood vessel in the brain. In order to reduce the burden of disability caused by stroke there is a need for better stroke treatments that are available to more stroke victims. Endovascular stroke treatment is increasingly being used and may fill this need, as it can be very effective at opening up occluded blood vessels in the brain. It is, however, not known which patients benefit clinically. More »
Process Improvement and Cost Savings in Stroke and TIA Care
The looming healthcare financial crisis in America led to the creation of the Stanford Clinical Excellence Research Center (CERC). The mission of the program is: "better health, less spending." CERC brings together individuals with backgrounds in medicine, industrial engineering, and management and social sciences in an effort to create innovative healthcare delivery models that safely lower per capita spending while maintaining or improving health outcomes and patient experience. The goal is to bend the national trend of the ever increasing portion of our national GDP being spent on healthcare. Stanford Stoke Center faculty member Amy Tai is collaborating with CERC on a novel stroke/TIA heath care delivery project. More »
Diagnostic Accuracy of MRI in Spontaneous Intracerebral Hemorrhage (DASH)
bleeding within the brain tissue. It affects about a million patients worldwide every year and has the highest mortality and morbidity of any type of stroke. Of all patients who present with a stroke 10-20% will have suffered a spontaneous (non-traumatic) ICH rather than an ischemic stroke. This percentage is higher among Black, Asian, and Hispanic populations, and expected to rise in the United States over the next few decades, due to increasing age and continuing changes in racial demographics. More »