Stroke Treatment Saves Lives

CINCINNATI (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) -- It's the deadliest type of stroke -- one that causes bleeding in the brain. Doctors say there's been no effective treatment for patients -- until now.

The fact that this grandma can play Scrabble is pretty amazing. Eighty-seven year old Frances Bednarz had a stroke four months ago. "It's such a blank," she says. "I just remember going to the hospital. That is about all I remember."

Her daughter, Rosemary Henry, says, "She was looking at me and having a conversation with me, but it made no sense."

Frances suffered a brain hemorrhage -- bleeding in the brain -- caused by her stroke.

"It's a terrible type of stroke though, in that 40 to 45 percent of the patients that have a hemorrhage are dead at a month," neurologist Joseph Broderick, M.D., of University of Cincinnati, tells Ivanhoe.

Dr. Broderick says it was believed that bleeding in the brain lasts for just minutes after the stroke and then stops. But his research shows the bleeding can continue for hours. "What this meant is that since the bleeding growth was a problem, if we had a therapy that could stop that, then that could make a difference for these patients."

The drug NovoSeven is already used to treat people who have bleeding problems. New research in Europe shows it also improves the outcome of stroke victims who have a hemorrhage.

"If you can give something that you know changes the odds in their favor, that's something that's exciting," Dr. Broderick says.

It's a treatment that could have helped Frances. She's beating the odds, but she's not happy she had to move to an assisted living facility. She makes the best of it knowing she survived what many people don't.

You may have heard of the treatment tPA for stroke. TPA actually does the opposite of NovoSeven. There are two types of stroke -- one where a patient has a blood clot and another one where the patient bleeds. TPA helps break down blood clots, while NovoSeven stops the bleeding. Just like tPA, NovoSeven must be given as soon as possible after a stroke.

This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, who offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, go to: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.

If you would like more information, please contact:

Sheryl Hilton
University of Cincinnati Medical Center
3223 Eden Ave., Room 165
Cincinnati, OH 45267-0550
(513) 558-4561
http://www.medcenter.uc.edu