Paramedics may be best first line of defense in treating stroke patients

This study involved an unprecedented cooperative effort of paramedics in the field and emergency physicians serving as investigators,” said Dr. Sidney Starkman, co-principal investigator and co-director of the UCLA Stroke Center. “Through this study we were able to instill permanently in everyone’s mind the idea that ‘time is brain.’ We believe this represents a paradigm shift in the treatment of stroke and potentially numerous other neurological conditions,” said Starkman, who also is professor of emergency medicine and neurology at the Geffen School. “We demonstrated that paramedics not only are eager to provide the best possible patient care, but also are capable of being invaluable partners in an intense, time-dependent clinical trial.” Today, the only ways to treat strokes caused by blocked blood vessels are to reopen the arteries with tissue plasminogen activator, a clot-busting drug, or to use catheters to remove the clot. But, in general, neither can be done until the patient arrives at the hospital and undergoes a CT scan to rule out bleeding in the brain. Additional treatments can only be offered after that, by which time substantial brain injury may already have occurred. The FAST–MAG trial used magnesium because in animal studies it dilated blood vessels and increased blood flow in the brain. Magnesium also countered the damaging calcium buildup that occurs when cells are deprived of oxygen. It had been already approved for use in humans, it had ...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news