Free Republic

A team of researchers argue that vitamin supplements can help prevent secondary strokes. They also advocate for the value of new technologies in eye research to verify these findings. Homocysteine is an amino acid associated with stroke and secondary stroke when elevated above normal levels. B vitamins and folate, also known as vitamin B9, can help lower levels of homocysteine and stroke, according to a peer-reviewed editorial. Elevated homocysteine is the result of genetic mutations or inadequate stores of vitamins B6, B12, folate and riboflavin (B2). Lowering it is relatively inexpensive because it can be achieved through vitamin supplementation. The...

Forget walking 10,000 steps a day. Taking at least 50 steps climbing stairs each day could significantly slash your risk of heart disease, according to a new study. The study, published in Atherosclerosis, found that climbing more than five flights of stairs daily could reduce risk of cardiovascular disease by 20%. Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) along with coronary artery disease and stroke are the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. "Short bursts of high-intensity stair climbing are a time-efficient way to improve cardiorespiratory fitness and lipid profile, especially among those unable to achieve the current physical activity recommendations," said...

Celebrity TV dentist Dr Uchenna Okoye died from a bleed on the brain, a coroner's report has found. The 53-year-old, who starred on Channel 4 makeover show 10 Years Younger and was a regular contributor on ITV's This Morning, died on 15 September after falling ill at home. In a statement based on a coroner's report, and released by Dr Okoye's personal assistant, it said her "sudden death" was caused by a subarachnoid haemorrhage. According to the NHS, this is an uncommon type of stroke caused by bleeding in the space between the brain and thin tissues that surround the...

Judy Sheindlin has seen more than her fair share of eye-opening court battles but nothing could have prepared her for what happened to her during one of her live shows. The Judge Judy star - who is now at the helm of her show Judy Justice which streams on Amazon - believed she suffered a mini-stroke in front of her audience in 2011. Judy opened up about the scary moment while talking to Good Morning America and admitted she thinks she had a transient ischemic attack (TIA). WATCH: Judge Judy shares husband's 85th birthday gift According to the New York...

There is “no evidence” that Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) suffers from a seizure disorder or suffered a stroke during an incident on August 30 when he appeared to freeze, Attending Physician Brian Monahan wrote Tuesday. “My examination of you following your August 30, 2023 brief episode included several medical evaluations: brain MRI imaging, EEG study and consultations with several neurologists for a comprehensive neurology assessment,” Monahan prefaced in a letter to McConnell. “There is no evidence that you have a seizure disorder or that you experienced a stroke, TIA or movement disorder such as Parkinson’s disease,” the doctor wrote. “There...

Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell, who froze during a news conference Wednesday and earlier this year suffered a concussion after falling down, has also endured two other falls this year, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. The first known time, in February, occurred in Finland when McConnell and a US delegation met with the Finnish president in Helsinki, according to three sources familiar with the matter. As he got out of his car on a snowy day and walked towards his meeting with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö, the GOP leader tripped and fell, the sources said of the...

OVID-19 rumors are mounting again on social media related to actor Jamie Foxx after he broke his silence on Saturday about an unspecified "medical complication" that left him hospitalized in early April. SNIP Meanwhile, the claim has been fact checked by Newsweek and was found to be wholly unverified. A spokesperson for Foxx also addressed the vaccine rumors in June, telling NBC News in an emailed statement that the claim is "completely inaccurate." However after Foxx's Instagram video, numerous people posted to Twitter to comment about his condition. Twitter user Luther Cyrus wrote, "Jamie Foxx is definitely vaccine injured. Too...

Researchers from Johns Hopkins and the Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions looked at 15 diseases and concluded that 371,000 Americans died and 424,000 were permanently disabled as a result of misdiagnoses. About 795,000 Americans die or are permanently disabled every year due to misdiagnosed medical conditions. A new analysis led by experts at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore looks more closely at diagnostic error and its impact. "Prior work has generally focused on errors occurring in a specific clinical setting, such as primary care, the emergency department or hospital-based care," lead author Dr. David Newman-Toker, director of...

Most stroke patients taking the anticoagulant warfarin were no more likely than those not on the medication to experience a brain bleed when undergoing a procedure to remove a blood clot researchers report in a study. The findings could help doctors better gauge the risk of endovascular thrombectomy (EVT), potentially expanding the pool of eligible patients for this mainstay stroke treatment. "Warfarin is a type of blood thinner commonly used to prevent stroke because of heart conditions such as atrial fibrillation. Although not very common, patients taking warfarin may still experience a stroke. In clinical practice, it's very possible that...

For patients with stroke of recent onset or progression of stroke symptoms and no occlusion of large or medium-sized cerebral vessels, intravenous tirofiban is associated with an increased likelihood of an excellent outcome, according to a study. Wenjie Zi, M.D. and colleagues conducted a multicenter trial involving patients with ischemic stroke without occlusion of large or medium-sized vessels, a National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score of 5 or greater, and at least one moderately to severely weak limb. Eligible patients were ineligible for thrombolysis or thrombectomy and within 24 hours of stroke; had progression of stroke symptoms soon after...

A study reports that the additive neuroprotection of a combination of two omega-3 fatty acid-derived signaling molecules is more effective in protecting brain cells and increasing recovery from stroke in an experimental model than a single drug. The team examined the bioactivity of Neuroprotectin D1 (NPD1—discovered by the Bazan lab in 2003) combined with Resolvin D1 (RvD1) in experimental stroke. These two naturally occurring neuroprotective molecules in the brain derived from docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) called docosanoids have been shown to limit excessive inflammatory responses, regulate metabolism and immune cell functions, decrease the production of proinflammatory factors,...

Data from the phase III INTERACT3 study demonstrate that a new combination of treatments for stroke due to intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) significantly improves the chances of surviving without major disability. The INTERACT3 study is the first-ever randomized controlled trial to show a clearly positive outcome for the treatment of ICH. Timely administration of the new treatment protocol—known as a Care Bundle—centered on the rapid control of high blood pressure, led to improved recovery, lower rates of death, and better overall quality of life. Professor Craig Anderson said, "Despite the high rates of ICH and its severity, there are few proven...

A new poll found that two-thirds of California voters believe Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) is no longer fit to serve in the Senate due to her ongoing health battles. The Berkley IGS poll released Thursday found that about 67 percent of Californians said they agreed with the statement, “Feinstein’s latest illness underlines the fact that she is no longer fit to continue serving in the U.S. Senate.” About 42 percent said the solution was to have Feinstein resign from the Senate, while 27 percent said she should continue to serve in her seat and leave office on her own terms....

People who experience a type of stroke linked with nearly half of all dementias could be treated for the first time by repurposing two cheap and common drugs, a trial shows. Researchers found that isosorbide mononitrate and cilostazol, which are already used to treat other heart and circulatory diseases, can safely improve the debilitating outcomes people experience after lacunar stroke. The two drugs, which were found to be even more effective when used in combination. Lacunar strokes affect at least 35,000 people in the UK each year. They are caused by cerebral small vessel disease, where small blood vessels deep...

Different methods of giving patients the same drug to prevent severe complications after a type of stroke lead to different outcomes. Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage, a type of stroke, has an average mortality rate of 30 to 50 percent. A drug called nimodipine is the only treatment proven to prevent this complication. It's recommended that all patients receive nimodipine for 21 days. However, there are different ways to administer the drug. Patients who are able to swallow tablets or capsules receive a consistent dose. The issue arises with patients who are unable to swallow the medication. In areas where nimodipine tablets...

Intensive blood pressure treatment significantly reduces the risk of adverse cerebrovascular events such as stroke. New research shows evidence of how the brain benefits from consistently lower blood pressure. The study is a follow-up analysis of the Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT), a multicenter clinical trial that compared intensive systolic blood pressure control (target less than 120 mm Hg) versus standard control (target less than 140 mm Hg). SPRINT enrolled participants aged 50 or older with hypertension and without diabetes or a history of stroke. "Our study demonstrates that lowering systolic blood pressure to below 120 mm Hg is...

Jamie Foxx was hospitalized in Atlanta after a stroke, praying for a speedy recovery. ❤️

A new paper from Germany posted on April 5, 2023 proves that the spike protein accumulates in the brain and causes death of brain cells (which would certainly explain a great deal of what we see around us). (click here) Key findings: “Our results revealed the accumulation of the spike protein in the skull marrow, brain meninges, and brain parenchyma.” “The injection of the spike protein alone caused cell death in the brain, highlighting a direct effect on brain tissue.” “we observed the presence of spike protein in the skull of deceased long after their COVID-19 infection, suggesting that the...

A Chinese national, who suffered a stroke while working here, died from pneumonia on March 22, just weeks before his flight home. According to Shin Min Daily News, the 48-year-old, surnamed Wang, was scheduled to return to his hometown in China's Jilin province in mid-April. Wang arrived here in January 2022 to work as an assistant chef, and later a dishwasher. In April, he suffered a stroke at his dormitory and underwent brain surgery at Tan Tock Seng Hospital, where doctors had to remove a part of his skull to save his life. After the surgery, Wang became bedridden and...