STROKEAHA: September 19, 2013 Background and Purpose—Use of the modified Rankin scale (mRS) in multicenter trials may be limited by interobserver variability. We assessed the effect of this on trial power and developed a novel group adjudication approach. Methods—We generated power and sample size estimates from simulated trials modeled with varying mRS reliability. We conducted […]
Nature: September 18, 2013 Mahesh P Kate, Mikkel B Hansen, Kim Mouridsen, Leif Østergaard, Victor Choi, Bronwen E Gould, Rebecca McCourt, Michael D Hill, Andrew M Demchuk, Shelagh B Coutts, Dariush Dowlatshahi, Derek J Emery, Brian H Buck, Kenneth S Butcher and for the ICHADAPT Investigators Abstract Blood pressure (BP) reduction after intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is controversial, because of concerns that this may cause critical reductions in perihematoma perfusion and thereby […]
JACC: September 1, 2013 Objectives To test the hypothesis that a specific bleeding risk score, HAS-BLED was better at predicting major bleeding compared to CHADS2 and CHA2DS2-VASc in anticoagulated atrial fibrillation (AF) patients. Background The CHADS2 and CHA2DS2-VASc scores are well-validated stroke risk prediction scores for AF, but are also associated with increased bleeding and mortality. Methods We […]
CIRCULATIONAHA: September 12, 2013 Background—Emerging studies suggest that early administration of dual antiplatelet therapy may be better than monotherapy for prevention of early recurrent stroke and cardiovascular outcomes in acute ischemic stroke (IS) and transient ischemic attack (TIA). We performed a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating dual versus mono antiplatelet therapy for acute non-cardioembolic […]
AHA: 9/12/13 Improving walking after stroke is one of the main goals of rehabilitation. Electromechanical-assisted gait training uses specialist machines to assist walking practice and might help to improve walking after stroke. Objectives: Our systematic review examined the effects of electromechanical and robotic-assisted gait training devices for improving walking after stroke and also assessed the acceptability and safety of this type of therapy. Read […]
AHA: 9/12/13 Colony-stimulating factors (CSFs) regulate bone marrow production of red cells, white cells, and platelets. CSFs have been hown to be neuroprotective in experimental stroke, and some SFs also mobilize bone marrow stem cells into the circulation. We systematically reviewed the safety and efficacy of CSFs in people with acute or subacute stroke and their effect on circulating blood counts.1 Read more
Wiley: 9/5/13 Reliable estimates of intracluster correlation coefficients (ICCs) for specific outcome measures are crucial for sample size calculations of future cluster randomized trials. ICCs indicate the proportion of data variability that is explained by defined levels of clustering. Aims In this manuscript, we present potentially valuable and reliable estimates of ICCs for specific baseline and […]
Diabetes Care: August 13, 2013 OBJECTIVE Transcription factor 7-like 2 (TCF7L2) polymorphisms are strongly associated with type 2 diabetes, but controversially with plasma lipids and cardiovascular disease. Interactions of the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) on these associations are unknown. We investigated whether the TCF7L2-rs7903146 (C>T) polymorphism associations with type 2 diabetes, glucose, lipids, and cardiovascular disease incidence were modulated […]
STROKEAHA: September 3, 2013 Background and Purpose—The practicalities of doing ambulance-based trials where paramedics perform all aspects of a clinical trial involving patients with ultra-acute stroke have not been assessed. Methods—We performed a randomized controlled trial with screening, consent, randomization, and treatment performed by paramedics prior to hospitalization. Patients with probable ultra-acute stroke (<4 hours) and […]
Nejm: 9/1/13 In this phase 2 dose-validation study, we studied two populations of patients: those who had undergone aortic- or mitral-valve replacement within the past 7 days and those who had undergone such replacement at least 3 months earlier. Patients were randomly assigned in a 2:1 ratio to receive either dabigatran or warfarin. The selection of […]
