Cerebrovascular diseases
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Cerebrovascular diseases · Jan 2006
Antiplatelet cilostazol is effective in the prevention of pneumonia in ischemic stroke patients in the chronic stage.
We have previously reported that the phosphodiesterase inhibitor cilostazol, an antiplatelet agent, is effective and safe for secondary prevention of recurrent cerebral infarction (Cilostazol Stroke Prevention Study; CSPS). We now report the efficacy of this drug in the prevention of pneumonia in the chronic stage of cerebral infarction as a part of our CSPS subgroup analysis. ⋯ The rates of complications and pneumonia risk factors showed no difference between the two groups. We conclude that the administration of cilostazol to patients with cerebral infarction in the chronic stage does not only reduce the recurrence of infarction but also the incidence of pneumonia at least in Japanese patients.
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Cerebrovascular diseases · Jan 2005
ReviewSelecting patients for early stroke treatment with penumbra images.
Review of results of experimental and clinical studies indicates that the area of physiologically impaired, but potentially salvageable, tissue surrounding the central core of focal cerebral ischemia that develops shortly after onset of vessel occlusion is complex and dynamic with severity and duration thresholds for hypoxic stress and injury that are specific to tissue site, cell type, molecular pathway or gene expression investigated, and efficiency of collateral or residual flow and reperfusion. Identification of this ischemic penumbra in the acute stroke clinical setting is an important goal for stroke researchers and clinicians. Recent advances in neuroimaging allowed a better understanding of this physiopathological process. ⋯ A number of multicenter clinical trials are now under way to test these models and confirm the utility of penumbra imaging for treatment decisions. Present knowledge about visualization of the salvageable penumbra suggests a promising future in which penumbra imaging studies are performed routinely in the acute stroke setting and the data provided by these studies assist in individualizing therapeutic decisions and identifying effective therapies that can be delivered at late time points. So, the main target of management is 'penumbra', or salvageable tissue, which is primarily dependent upon the expediency of the whole process, better expressed by the phrase 'Penumbra (and not Time) is Brain'.
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Cerebrovascular diseases · Jan 2005
Stroke units, tissue plasminogen activator, aspirin and neuroprotection: which stroke intervention could provide the greatest community benefit?
Although a number of acute stroke interventions are of proven efficacy, there is uncertainty about their community benefits. We aimed to assess this within a defined population. ⋯ Although tPA is the most potent intervention, management in stroke units has the greatest population benefit and should be a priority.
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Cerebrovascular diseases · Jan 2005
Cognitive correlates of cerebral white matter lesions and water diffusion tensor parameters in community-dwelling older people.
The biological basis of cognitive ageing is unknown. One underlying process might be disruption of white matter tracts connecting cortical regions. White matter lesions (WML) seen on structural MRI may disrupt cortical connections, but diffusion tensor MRI (DT-MRI) parameters - mean diffusivity (
) and fractional anisotropy (FA) - may reflect more subtle changes in white matter integrity. Here the relationships between WML load, DT-MRI parameters and cognition in a large cohort of elderly subjects with a very narrow age range were investigated. ⋯ DT-MRI parameters, in particular , are sensitive to early ultrastructural changes underlying cognitive ageing. Executive function may be the cognitive domain most sensitive to age-related decline in white matter tract integrity.