Free Republic

Each year about 15 million people globally experience a stroke. How quickly therapy is administered and its effectiveness has a large effect on a person’s recovery after a stroke. Researchers from the Heart Research Institute in Australia have found that a natural chemical found in broccoli may help both prevent and treat stroke. Every year, about 15 million people around the world experience a stroke — a cardiovascular condition that occurs when blood and oxygen are unable to get to the brain. Depending on the type of stroke, the main treatmentTrusted Source is either using medications to break down blood...

A three-year world-first study has found that a common cruciferous vegetable eaten by millions every day could prevent and treat one of the nation's biggest killers. In pre-clinical trials, the study confirmed a natural chemical found in broccoli can reduce the formation of harmful blood clots that can in some instances lead to stroke, as well as improve the performance of clot-busting drugs afterwards. About 85% of strokes are caused by the formation of a harmful blood clot in the brain (also known as acute ischemic stroke). "After a patient has an ischemic stroke, they are treated with tissue plasminogen...

There are currently few treatment options available for the consequences of stroke, one of the most severe of which is neuronal death, caused by the lack of oxygen during the arterial blockade and the inflammation that follows the restoration of blood flow. Now, Dr. Borja Ibáñez has demonstrated in a rat model that treatment with metoprolol protects the brain during a stroke and greatly reduces the severity of its long-term consequences. Rats that received intravenous metoprolol during the course of a stroke had less cerebral inflammation and neuronal death and better long-term improvement in neuromotor capacities. "This animal study beats...

AP MEDICAL WRITER KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- Like pouring Drano directly on a clog, doctors dramatically improved stroke survival by dripping a clot-dissolving drug right onto a blockage choking off the brain's blood supply. Many patients given this experimental treatment had stunning recoveries within a day, often without the speech loss and paralysis that can follow a stroke, doctors reported Thursday. A second study found that people given the treatment were 65 percent more likely to be able to walk, talk and function normally three months after their strokes than those given standard care. "We're very encouraged by these results," said...