Journal of stroke and cerebrovascular diseases : the official journal of National Stroke Association
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J Stroke Cerebrovasc Dis · Oct 2013
Optimal timing and duration of continuous electrocardiographic monitoring for detecting atrial fibrillation in stroke patients.
Several studies have suggested that after ischemic stroke, continuous electrocardiographic (ECG) monitoring (CEM) increases the atrial fibrillation (AF) detection rate. However, optimal CEM terms of use are not clear. The aim of our study was to evaluate the usefulness of CEM in detecting AF and define optimal terms of the use of CEM. ⋯ We suggest that in order to enhance the detection rate of AF, CEM could be generalized in the stroke unit. It must be started early in patients with acute stroke and prolonged over a minimum of 4 days.
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J Stroke Cerebrovasc Dis · Oct 2013
Safety and effectiveness of endovascular treatment after 6 hours of symptom onset in patients with anterior circulation ischemic stroke: a matched case control study.
Endovascular treatment within 6 hours of symptom onset appears to be beneficial in carefully selected patients with ischemic stroke. It is unclear whether endovascular treatment beyond 6 hours of symptom onset is safe and efficacious. ⋯ We did not observe any evidence of benefit in halting neurologic worsening or improving outcomes among patients undergoing endovascular treatment for treatment of an anterior circulation ischemic stroke after 6 hours of symptom onset. Strong evidence of both the safety and efficacy of emergent endovascular treatment when administered to patients with stroke in the anterior circulation is needed.
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J Stroke Cerebrovasc Dis · Oct 2013
Additional endovascular therapy in patients with acute ischemic stroke who are nonresponsive to intravenous tissue plasminogen activator: usefulness of magnetic resonance angiography-diffusion mismatch.
In patients who are not responsive to intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (IV t-PA), the present study aimed to report recanalization rates, the incidence of hemorrhagic transformation (HT), and clinical outcomes of additional endovascular therapy (AET), and to investigate the usefulness of magnetic resonance angiography-diffusion mismatch (MDM) in a selection of patients eligible for AET. ⋯ AET for nonresponders to IV t-PA was safe, improved recanalization rates, and led to better prognoses. MDM was a very good predictor of improved prognosis in a selection of eligible patients for AET after IV t-PA.
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J Stroke Cerebrovasc Dis · Oct 2013
Cerebral hemodynamic changes at basilar artery in obstructive sleep apnea syndrome after continuous positive airway pressure treatment.
Cerebral vasoreactivity in obstructive sleep apnea syndrome is altered. Continuous positive airway pressure is effective in the reduction of the occurrence of apneas. We studied whether this treatment also improves cerebral vasoreactivity. ⋯ Cerebral vasoreactivity as measured by the apnea test improves after 2 years of continuous positive airway pressure. This improvement depends of the body mass index of the patient.
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J Stroke Cerebrovasc Dis · Oct 2013
Association of physical activity with the visuospatial/executive functions of the montreal cognitive assessment in patients with vascular cognitive impairment.
The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is more suitable than the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) for the detection of vascular cognitive impairment. In this study, we performed a correlation analysis of MoCA/MMSE scores with daily physical activity in patients with subcortical ischemic white matter changes. ⋯ These results suggest that MoCA is useful to detect a biologically determined specific relationship between physical activity and executive function. In addition, physical exercise, such as walking, may help enhance cognitive function in patients with vascular cognitive impairment of subcortical origin.