Stroke; a journal of cerebral circulation
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Review Comparative Study
Early assessments of dysphagia and aspiration risk in acute stroke patients.
Dysphagia is common after stroke and is a marker of poor prognosis. Early identification is important. This article reviews the merits and limitations of various assessment methods available to clinicians. ⋯ Although bedside tests remain an important early screening tool for dysphagia and aspiration risk, further refinements are needed to improve their accuracy.
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Review Meta Analysis Comparative Study
Duplex ultrasound and magnetic resonance angiography compared with digital subtraction angiography in carotid artery stenosis: a systematic review.
The purpose of this work was to review and compare published data on the diagnostic value of duplex ultrasonography (DUS), MR angiography (MRA), and conventional digital subtraction angiography (DSA) for the diagnosis of carotid artery stenosis. ⋯ These results suggest that MRA has a better discriminatory power compared with DUS in diagnosing 70% to 99% stenosis and is a sensitive and specific test compared with DSA in the evaluation of carotid artery stenosis. For detecting occlusion, both DUS and MRA are very accurate.
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Comparative Study Clinical Trial Controlled Clinical Trial
Dexmedetomidine and meperidine additively reduce the shivering threshold in humans.
Hypothermia might prove to be therapeutically beneficial in stroke victims; however, even mild hypothermia provokes vigorous shivering. Meperidine and dexmedetomidine each linearly reduce the shivering threshold (triggering core temperature) with minimal sedation. We tested the hypothesis that meperidine and dexmedetomidine synergistically reduce the shivering threshold without producing substantial sedation or respiratory depression. ⋯ Dexmedetomidine and meperidine additively reduce the shivering threshold; in the small doses tested, the combination produced only mild sedation and no respiratory toxicity.
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Obtaining viable informed consent from stroke patients for participation in clinical trials of acute stroke therapies is often problematic because of patients' neurological deficits. Furthermore, obtaining permission from surrogates is often not possible or not legally permissible. ⋯ Acute stroke researchers should consider conducting clinical trials with an exception from the informed consent requirement permitted by this law.
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Smoking is an established risk factor for ischemic stroke and subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), but the impact of smoking on intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is less clear. ⋯ This prospective study suggests an increased risk of total hemorrhagic stroke, ICH, and SAH in current cigarette smokers with a graded increase in risk that depended on how many cigarettes were smoked. The effect of smoking on ICH is of about the same magnitude as the effect of smoking on ischemic stroke. Our results add to the multiple health benefits that can be accrued by abstaining from cigarette smoking.