Sunday was World Stroke Day, where campaign groups, patients, researchers and advocates around the world called attention to one of the leading causes of death and disability globally.
According to data from the Stroke Association, a stroke strikes every five minutes in the UK, impacting the lives of not only survivors themselves but their families and loved ones, too.
In the context of World Stroke Day, we have rounded up the most exciting stroke research and innovation from recent months.
Smart brainwave cap helps speed up treatment
A special brainwave cap designed by researchers at Amsterdam University Medical Centers can diagnose stroke in an ambulance, enabling patients to receive appropriate treatment faster.
The brainwave test can identify an ischemic stroke and shows whether the blocked cerebral blood vessel is large or small.
By identifying patients who have had a large ischemic stroke, the cap ensures that patients can be routed to the right hospital for treatment.
An Amsterdam UMC spin-off company was founded in 2022 to develop the cap into a product and bring it to the market.
Health tracker set to improve stroke rehab
Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst in the US have been awarded $1.14 million (£940,000) over four years by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop a revolutionary way of tracking body movements.
Its primary application will be stroke survivors’ rehabilitation, with huge potential for future applications across a wide range of disciplines, health-related and beyond.
Patients recovering from stroke need to use their affected side as much as possible in order to improve their chances of rehabilitation.
However, determining how much a patient is using the weaker side outside of the hospital is a challenge.
The new sensing sensing technology, called Body Channel Identification, combines three key components.
‘Smart stickers’ are placed on everyday objects around the patient’s home, like a light switch, for example.
The tag is activated by a wearable wrist device which transmits data to the device about what the patient is doing (i.e. flicking on a light).
The tag and the wrist device are connected via the wearer’s own body to create a closed-loop circuit.
Alongside stroke, the tracker can be applied to other conditions involving motor impairments, including traumatic brain injuries, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease.
Converting brain immune cells into neurons helps stroke recovery in mice
Researchers in Japan have discovered that turning brain immune cells into neurons successfully restores brain function after stroke-like injury in mice.
The findings from the team at Kyushu University suggest that replenishing neurons from immune cells could be a promising avenue for treating stroke in humans.
To conduct the study, the scientists temporarily blocked the right middle cerebral artery in the brains of mice.
A week later, they examined the mice and found that they had difficulties in motor function and had a marked loss of neurons in the striatum – part of the brain involved in decision making, action planning and motor coordination.
The researchers then inserted DNA into microglial cells at the site of the injury.
The DNA held instructions for producing NeuroD1 – a protein that induces neuronal conversion.
Over the following weeks, the infected cells began developing into neurons and the areas of the brain with neuron loss decreased.
After eight weeks, the new induced neurons had successfully integrated within the brain’s circuits.
At only three weeks post-infection, the mice showed improved motor function in behavioural tests.
Research reveals link between stroke and depression
Researchers in the US have made inroads into understanding the link between stroke and depression.
Using blood samples from 85 adults who had suffered a stroke, Stanford University scientists pinpointed a molecular signature of post-stroke depression.
Many of the molecules seen in the blood of stroke survivors with depression were immune molecules, which suggested a link between immune activity in the brain and post-stroke depression.
More work is needed to confirm the findings.
However, if immune response and serotonin pathways do play a role as the researchers suspect, this could lead to potential new treatments for stroke survivors.
Rapid stroke test being trailed in the UK
A UK health technology company has began a clinical trial of its point-of-care rapid blood test for stroke.
The study of Upfront Diagnostics’ LVOne is being led by the Newcastle University Stroke Research Group.
The device can detect a stroke caused by a Large Vessel Occlusion (LVO) within 15 minutes, allowing rapid action to transport LVO patients to a specialist centre.
The device could potentially save billions in medical treatment costs, prevent disabilities and save countless lives.
The clinical trial which is now underway involves 500 patients with support from SBRI Healthcare and NIHR Clinical Research Network at the Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital, Royal Victoria Infirmary, University Hospital of North Durham and Royal Blackburn Hospital.
Could synthetic protein aid stroke recovery?
Researchers in the US hope to learn whether giving stroke patients a synthetic protein can improve their recovery.
The body produces the protein Factor VIIa to help stop bleeding at the site of a blood vessel injury.
Now, researchers at UC Davis Health are studying a medication intervention that involves administering the synthetic version of the same protein but in a much larger dose than the body usually makes.
This high dose, known as recombinant Factor VIIa (rFVIIa), will be delivered to eligible participants who are experiencing intracerebral haemorrhage, a type of stroke that causes bleeding in the brain.
Researchers in the NIH-sponsored trials want to determine if giving stroke patients the protein will slow bleeding in the brain and improve a stroke patient’s outcome within 180 days.
