View clinical trials related to Stroke.
Filter by:Stroke is a leading causes of death and disability. At least 20% of strokes occur during sleep, so- called 'wake up stroke'. Thrombolysis with the clot-busting drug alteplase is effective for acute ischaemic stroke, provided that it is given within 4.5 hours of symptom onset. Patients with wake-up stroke are currently ineligible for clot-busting therapy. Previous studies indicate that many wake-up strokes occur just before awakening. In this study, patients with wake-up stroke will be randomized to thrombolysis with tenecteplase and best standard treatment or to best standard treatment without thrombolysis. Tenecteplase has several potential advantages over alteplase, including very rapid action and that it can be given as a single injection. Prior to thrombolysis, a brain scan must be done to exclude bleeding or significant brain damage as a result from the stroke. We will use a CT scan to inform this decision. CT is used as a routine examination in all stroke patients. Other studies testing clot-busting treatment in wake-up stroke are using alteplase and more complex brain scans, which are not routinely available in the emergency situation in all hospitals.
There is a need to improve the discharge process for patients with stroke, which has been reported to be a particularly stressful time for patients. A Patient Oriented Discharge Summary (PODS) meeting has been shown to be an effective approach for minimizing discharge-related stress and fostering self-management skills in other patients being discharged from rehabilitation into the community. The purpose of this study is to develop and evaluate whether a PODS meeting can minimize stress around the discharge process and improve patient satisfaction with this process. There are two main hypotheses regarding the PODS program: 1) it will help in-patients with stroke understand key issues related to knowledge required once discharged and 2) it will increase levels of self-efficacy in in-patients with stroke. Potential subjects are encouraged to participate if they are a Sunnybrook - St. John's Rehab admitted in-patient with a stroke diagnosis who are 18 years or older and meet the following criteria: (a) fluent in English; (b) cognitively intact; and (c) have minimal or no aphasia.The participant will be asked to answer some surveys 8-10 days prior to discharge about their knowledge and confidence in managing their stroke. The participant will then be asked to meet with a clinical staff member who will hold a one-hour PODS meeting. In the meeting, a discharge plan will be created and given to the patient that covers a number of topics that will be useful following their return to the community. One day following the PODS meeting, the participant will be asked to answer the same survey they completed prior to the PODS and again 3-5 days following discharge. If the participant is interested they will be asked to undergo a brief interview to get their feedback on the PODS Program. It is anticipated that about 20 people will participate in the program with all 20 patients completing the surveys with 6 being asked to complete the brief interview. To the best of the investigators knowledge, there is little risk associated with this study. Participants may become uncomfortable during the interview while discussing their experiences. By participating in this study, patients will be provided with a chance to gather information and learn problem solving and self-management skills prior to discharge. It is the hope of this project that it can lead to a more effective approach in supporting the transition from the hospital to the community for patients with stroke
A Patient Reported Outcome Measure (PROM) is a questionnaire that asks patients for their views on their own health or the impact of healthcare they have received on their health and quality of life (RCN, 2011). The benefit of PROMS is that they gather information from the patient's perspective, which offers great potential to improve the quality and outcomes of health services (Department of Health 2011). There is a PROM (the PROMIS-10 Global Health) and a number of extra questions that are recommended for use in people who have had a stroke by the International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measurement, but the best way of delivering these questions for stroke survivors is unknown. At present, the NHS in England, Scotland and Wales are required to offer every stroke survivors a 6 month post stroke follow-up appointment. Currently, the information collected at the 6 month review is not from the patient's perspective and the best method of collecting this information has not been established. The Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme (SSNAP) which is led by the Royal College of Physicians in London promote the 6 month follow-up assessment. SSNAP recognise that currently 4 different methods of 6 month follow-up appointment occur. The current methods in use are face-to-face assessment, telephone interview, online questionnaire or postal questionnaire. The aim of this research is to understand if there is a difference between these 4 methods of delivering these questions in people who have had a stroke. As part of the 6 month review this research study will assess the response rate for 15 Patient Reported Health Status questions across the 4 recognised methods of delivery; - Face-to-Face - Telephone - Online - Post To conduct this research study a sample of 808 stroke survivors will be asked to take part in the research. From these 808 people, 202 participants will be randomly assigned to each method of administration (Face-to-Face Interview, Telephone Interview, Postal Questionnaire and Online Questionnaire). The questionnaires received by the research team will not record any personally identifiable information. The data will then be utilised by the researchers for statistical analysis in order to identify, which method of the 4 methods of administration, under investigation, is the most acceptable for stroke survivors. The conclusions of this research will inform the roll-out of the most appropriate method of delivering the 6 month stroke follow-up review for stroke survivors.
Few patients recover full hand dexterity after an acquired brain injury such as stroke. Repetitive somatosensory electrical stimulation (SES) is a promising method to promote recovery of hand function. However, studies using SES have largely focused on gross motor function; it remains unclear if it can modulate distal hand functions such as finger individuation. The specific goal of this study was to monitor the effects of SES on individuation as well as on cortical oscillations measured using EEG, with the additional goal of identifying neurophysiological biomarkers.
This is a phase 2 randomized single-center open label clinical trial with randomization of 1:1 to either best medical management vs. best medical management and endovascular revascularization of chronically occluded ICA (COICA). The study will utilize best medical management and will randomize patients to endovascular balloon angioplasty and stenting. Primary Objective: To test the hypothesis that endovascular revascularization of COICA improves significantly cognitive function assessed by a specifically designed battery of 14 cognitive tests including the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). Secondary Objective: To test the safety of endovascular revascularization of chronically occluded ICA. Tertiary/exploratory Objectives: To test the hypothesis that subjects with symptomatic COICAs and mild/moderate cognitive dysfunction have the following biomarkers: A) Presence of lactate and decreased Naa/Cr in the watershed area (specifically centrum semiovale) on 1H-MRI-spectroscopy, and B) Decreased size of the hippocampus and amygdala on MRI. C) increased MTT on CTP in the ipsilateral side of the occluded ICA specifically in the MCA territory when compared to the opposite unaffected hemisphere.
To evaluate the benefits of Mirror Therapy (MT) and motivation in patients with different levels of post-stroke motor impairment with two different therapy protocols. This is a randomized uncontrolled blinded study, with 27 individuals in the chronic phase of stroke. Participants were randomized into two intervention groups: MT group with motor patterns of movement (MP, n=13) and MT group with specific functional activities (SA, n=14). Motor impairment assessments (Fugl-Meyer Assessment - FMA), motivation (Intrinsic Motivation Inventory) and functionality (Functional Independence Measure - FIM) were performed before and after treatment, and 3 months after the end of sessions (follow-up). In each intervention group,there were patients classified with mild, moderate or severe motor impairment, according to FMA. All participants performed 15 MT sessions, 3 times a week for 50 minutes each session.
The present study aims to develope a risk assessment model of ischemic stroke endpoint events combining multi-dimensional traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) indicators with modern medicine indicators. The proposed study is a registry study based participant survey conducted in 7 hospitals nationwide in China. After obtaining informed consent, a total of 3000 study patients diagnosed with ischemic stroke will be recruited. 1-year follow-ups are carried out on-site in hospitals and by telephone to track endpoint events. At the same time, we conducted a prospective, multicenter, real-world longitudinal cohort study at 7 hospitals in China to investigate the clinical effectiveness of Qilong capsule (QLC) combined with CT for IS with Qi deficiency and blood stasis syndrome.
Individuals poststroke with gait and balance impairment are typically less active and have low levels of physical fitness. Improving fitness level while also improving gait and balance is very important. Maximizing the exercise training benefit requires the appropriate level of effort is achieved. Traditional exercise programs scale aerobic demand by increasing the walking speed or the slope of the treadmill surface. This may be difficult for individuals who experience decreased balance at faster speeds or on sloped surfaces and require the use of handrails to safely walk under these conditions. These exercise programs show limited improvement in walking ability after training. This project will test a novel approach, resistance-based treadmill walking, for maximizing improvements in fitness and ability to walk by individuals poststroke. The investigators previous research has shown that backward directed resistive force applied to the pelvis while walking is well tolerated by individuals poststroke. Further, these forces can be used to effectively scale aerobic demand while walking in a controlled manner. With traditional treadmill training approaches handrail support is utilized to ensure safety. However, handrail support externally stabilizes the individual reducing training improvements in walking capacity and balance. For this pilot investigation a group that aerobically trains using a standard exercise treadmill training paradigm will be compared to a group that experiences progressive backward directed resistive forces applied to an individuals' pelvis while they walk at comfortable walking speeds without the aid of handrails. Individuals will wear a fall harness that provides no external stabilization but prevents falls to the treadmill surface. This approach has the potential benefit of allowing individuals poststroke to meaningfully practice walking at safe speeds but against resistance thereby improving walking economy, dynamic balance, and walking speed. The proposed project is necessary to gather preliminary data for a much larger training study that has the potential to change the clinical approach for improving gait economy, balance, and walking speed for individuals poststroke.
After stroke, the combination of progressive skills practice in an adequate dose, exercise for fitness, and reduced sedentary time will augment motor and cognitive outcomes. Sensorimotor and cognitive improvements after stroke often reach a general plateau by approximately 12 weeks after onset, however. Drugs that might enhance learning or neural repair, as well as other molecular and synaptic adaptations that occur during skills training and fitness exercise, might extend that recovery curve, although to date only fluoxetine has given any hint of this. Most trials have tested agents that modulate neurotransmitters. Several very recent preclinical experiments and observational studies in patients after stroke suggest that the commercially available medication, Maraviroc, a CCR5 antagonist, may augment skills learning during rehabilitation training, especially during the first three months after onset, by affecting CREB and synaptic plasticity. The investigators will carry out a randomized controlled trial of Maraviroc in patients with disabilities severe enough to have required inpatient stroke rehabilitation and, based on our preclinical data, who can start the drug intervention within 6 weeks of stroke onset. The investigators will compare usual post-stroke care plus placebo versus Maraviroc given for 8 weeks in 60 participants. However, to try to maximize the amount of practice that is most relevant to the primary outcome measurements and determine whether or not Maraviroc can enhance the effects of training, as hypothesized, all participants will be tele-monitored by mobile health devices and will receive weekly telephonic encouragement, based on device data, to walk, reduce sedentary time, and reach and grasp in the home in between usual care therapies. Compliance, serial motor changes over time, and self-management skills in making use of the telerehabilitation devices will be a nested substudy of feasibility of remote monitoring and feedback.
The aim of the study is to perform a randomized double-blind placebo controlled prospective study in newborn infants with MRI confirmed Middle Cerebral Artery (MCA) Perinatal Arterial Ischemic Stroke (PAIS) with darbepoetin. It will be investigated whether intravenous administered darbepoetin can induce the formation of neuronal tissue and restore brain function in neonates who suffered from PAIS compared to placebo treated controls. The ultimate goal of this study is therefore to develop a therapy using erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESA) such as darbepoetin to reduce or even prevent lifelong consequences of PAIS-related brain injury in this group of term newborns.