Published in the journal, Lancet Neurology, a new study suggests that understanding stroke severity, as well as time to treatment, is key to delivering effective and safe thrombolysis treatment.
Thrombolysis, where drugs are injected into the blood to break up a blood clot, is one of the main treatments used to treat people who are having a stroke caused by a clot. Currently a drug called alteplase is used in thrombolysis. But the researchers think that another drug, called tenecteplase, may be more effective than alteplase. This study will investigate if this is the case.
This study will investigate whether reducing blood pressure can stop bleeding in the brain after thrombolysis (a clot-busting treatment for stroke) and improve patient's outcomes.
Exploring the effects of lowering blood pressure and a lower dose of clot busting drug on stroke outcome
PRESS RELEASE - Issued by University of Leicester Press Office on Tuesday 10 May
University of Leicester involved in the international ENCHANTED trial to improve survival rates of stroke victims. Stroke Association funds UK arm of the trial.
A panel of independent experts has decided that alteplase, a clot-busting drug often used to treat strokes is safe and effective under current guidelines.
About 80% of strokes are caused by a blocked blood vessel. One third of these patients have a blockage of a large blood vessel in the neck or brain known as large artery occlusion stroke (LAOS).
MR CLEAN is a Dutch trial that investigated treatment of a severe form of ischaemic stroke (blockage type stroke) with thrombolysis alone (dissolving a clot with clot-busting drugs), versus treatment with both thrombolysis.
Promising research results for a new drug treatment for ischaemic stroke patients have been published today in the journal ‘Lancet Neurology’.
Pilot trial of devices to extract clot from occluded arteries (PISTE)