April 2008

Clot-busting drug study gives stroke victims hope

There is new hope for ischemic stroke victims following the discovery that a clot-busting drug’s ability to restore blood flow to the brain could be greater than first believed.

If so, doctors would have more time—potentially double the existing three hours from the onset of symptoms—in which to administer the drug and limit the extent of irreversible brain damage.

In an international study led by Stephen Davis, Director of Neurology at the Royal Melbourne Hospital and Professor of Neurology at the University of Melbourne, and Professor Geoffrey Donnan, Head of the National Stroke Research Institute at the Austin Hospital, it was found that the drug—the only current licensed therapy for acute ischemic stroke—had positive effects for some patients, even if administered after three hours from the onset of symptoms.

‘The drug, alteplase, is currently approved for use only within three hours of the onset of symptoms of stroke,’ said Professor Davis.

‘This study sought to assess the benefits and risks of extending its administration beyond three hours, using MRI brain scans to help in patient selection.

‘The outcome of our study suggests that the window of opportunity for treating some ischemic stroke victims could be widened considerably and certainly supports further studies into extending the time window for this drug,’ Professor Davis said.

Researchers at 15 centres in Australia, New Zealand, Belgium and Scotland collated data from 1,224 ischemic stroke victims in the study.

The finding was presented at the American Stroke Association’s International Stroke Conference in New Orleans and published in The Lancet Neurology.