Device diverts blood to brain during stroke

February 9, 2004

Last Updated: 2004-02-06 11:45:36 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Martha Kerr

SAN DIEGO (Reuters Health) - A double-balloon catheter inserted into the

aorta during a stroke can reduce blood flow to the legs and instead

direct it to the arteries supplying the brain.

The experimental device appears to be safe, and has been shown to reduce

neurological impairment in stroke patients, even in those who have been

having symptoms for up to 12 hours.

At the American Stroke Association's Stroke Conference, Dr. S.

, III, of the Alabama Neurological Institute in Birmingham

reported results of pilot study of the device in 17 patients with acute

stroke of 12 hours duration or less.

Average time to treatment was 7.5 hours. The patients were not eligible

for clot-buster therapy, the only FDA-approved treatment for acute

ischemic stroke.

The balloons were placed above and below the renal arteries that branch

off the aorta. By inflating the balloons sequentially, blood is shifted

away from the lower extremities up toward the head. The device was left

in place for approximately 1 hour.

The device was able to divert enough blood to the brain arteries to

improve perfusion of the brain in 12 of 16 patients, reported.

Stroke scores improved considerably in 10 of 15 awake patients, and

remained so in 8 of them 24 hours after treatment.

After 30 days, two patients had died of stroke progression, but five of

the 15 survivors had minimal neurologic impairment.

The device appears to be safe, causing no episodes of cardiac stress,

vascular damage or bleeding in the brain, told Reuter Health.

One of the more promising results of the study is the apparent efficacy

in some patients with stroke of up to 12 hours in duration, he

commented.

Enrollment for a mid-phase clinical trial of the device has already

begun.

I'll tell you where to go!

Mayo Clinic in Rochester

s Hopkins Medicine

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