Strokes or cardiovascular accidents (CVAs) often give rise to medical negligence cases. There are a number of factors behind this basic fact: (1) Prophylactic measures are available to prevent many CVAs. For instance, patients with atrial fibrillation may benefit from preventative anticoagulation, depending upon their age, blood pressure, past medical history and related factors. (2) Time is of [...]
Stroke is a leading cause of death and disability in the U.S. Many strokes, also called cerebral vascular accidents or CVAs, are preventable with proper medical advice, such as controlling hypertension or anticoagulating certain patients with atrial fibrillation ("A Fib"). When a CVA occurs, if care providers act quickly, treatments exist to reverse its effects, such as [...]
For treatment of stroke, "time is brain." This means the sooner that treatment can restore blood flow to the brain, the more likely the patient will have a good outcome. I have previously written about one such treatment: clot busting medications. Clot busters, such as tPA, must be given within 4.5 hours of the onset [...]
When the diagnosis of stroke is unnecessarily delayed, the patient's treatment options become critically limited. Thromboembolic strokes, i.e., those caused by blood clots (thrombus) that travel (embolize) through blood vessels to cut off blood flow to the brain, can be treated by clot busting medications (thrombolytics such as tPA), but only if treatment is commenced within a certain [...]
New guidelines published by the American Heart Association (AHA) urge administration of clot busting medications, called tissue plasminogen activator (or, TPA), within 60 minutes of arrival at a hospital. TPA dissolves clots. It can be given intravenously or applied directly to the clot through a catheter in a procedure performed by an interventional radiologist. TPA can only be [...]
Stroke can occur in patients experiencing atrial fibrillation (A Fib). Due to the irregular beating of the heart caused by A Fib, blood clots can build up in the heart. These clots are at risk of being ejected from the heart and traveling to the brain where they cause stroke. Strokes can have devastating consequences for its [...]
Atrial fibrillation (or, "A Fib") is a common disorder of the heart. The incidence of A Fib increases with age. As the population ages, one projection estimates that almost 6 million people will have A Fib by 2050. One of the predominant risks of A Fib is stroke. The errant, inefficient beating of the heart associated with A Fib [...]
The use of clot busters (also called "thrombolytics") -- medications used to break up clots that block the flow of blood to the brain -- are even more effective in treating stroke in younger patients than elderly ones, according to a new report. The medication is designed to dissolve clots that occur with thromboembolic stroke and thereby [...]