Stroke; a journal of cerebral circulation
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Remodeling the brain: plastic structural brain changes produced by different motor therapies after stroke.
Studies on adult stroke patients have demonstrated functional changes in cortical excitability, metabolic rate, or blood flow after motor therapy, measures that can fluctuate rapidly over time. This study evaluated whether evidence could also be found for structural brain changes during an efficacious rehabilitation program. ⋯ These findings suggest that a previously overlooked type of brain plasticity, structural remodeling of the human brain, is harnessed by constraint-induced movement therapy for a condition once thought to be refractory to treatment: motor deficit in chronic stroke patients.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Effects of prophylactic antibiotic therapy with mezlocillin plus sulbactam on the incidence and height of fever after severe acute ischemic stroke: the Mannheim infection in stroke study (MISS).
Fever after stroke is a strong predictor for a negative outcome with infections as the most common cause. The aim of this pilot study was to evaluate the effects of prophylactic antibiotic therapy on the incidence and height of fever after acute ischemic stroke. ⋯ In patients with acute severe stroke, prophylactic administration of mezlocillin plus sulbactam over 4 days decreases body temperature, lowers the rate of infection, and may be associated with a better clinical outcome.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Treatment of hyperglycemia in ischemic stroke (THIS): a randomized pilot trial.
Hyperglycemia may worsen brain injury during acute cerebral infarction. We tested the feasibility and tolerability of aggressive hyperglycemia correction with intravenous insulin compared with usual care during acute cerebral infarction. ⋯ The intravenous insulin protocol corrected hyperglycemia during acute cerebral infarction significantly better than usual care without major adverse events and should be investigated in a clinical efficacy trial.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
A pilot study of randomized clinical controlled trial of gait training in subacute stroke patients with partial body-weight support electromechanical gait trainer and functional electrical stimulation: six-month follow-up.
This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of gait training using an electromechanical gait trainer with or without functional electrical stimulation for people with subacute stroke. ⋯ For the early stage after stroke, this study indicated a higher effectiveness in poststroke gait training that used an electromechanical gait trainer compared with conventional overground gait training. The training effect was sustained through to the 6-month follow-up after the intervention.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Emergency administration of abciximab for treatment of patients with acute ischemic stroke: results of an international phase III trial: Abciximab in Emergency Treatment of Stroke Trial (AbESTT-II).
A previous randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study suggested that abciximab may be safe and effective in treatment of acute ischemic stroke. The current phase 3 study was planned to test the relative efficacy and safety of abciximab in patients with acute ischemic stroke with planned treatment within 5 hours since symptoms onset. ⋯ This trial did not demonstrate either safety or efficacy of intravenous administration of abciximab for the treatment of patients with acute ischemic stroke regardless of end point or population studied. There was an increased rate of symptomatic or fatal intracranial hemorrhage in the primary and wake-up cohorts.