BLOOMINGTON A new weapon could turn the tide of the battle against stroke in favor of the good guys.
And the new treatment and medical professionals trained in its use are available at both Advocate BroMenn Medical Center in Normal and OSF St. Joseph Medical Center in Bloomington.
Two patients one at each hospital already have been successfully treated since both hospitals acquired the equipment and trained staff in the Solitaire revascularization device procedure. The device was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in March.
This device is going to be a game-changer for us in terms of speed and assurance in retrieving the (blood) clot, said Dr. Ajeet Gordhan, the interventional neuroradiologist with Bloomington Radiology who performs the Solitaire device procedure at both hospitals.
Few communities the size of Bloomington-Normal offer the new stroke treatment, Gordhan said.
While its uncertain how often the new procedure will be used, Gordhan currently performs about two stroke interventions each month at each hospital using the previous standard device for blood clot removal called the Merci Retrieval System. If those numbers hold, Gordhan could perform about 48 Solitaire procedures a year in Bloomington-Normal. The earlier patients are transported to either hospital, the more likely that they will be eligible for treatment.
Each hospital treats about 150 to 200 patients for stroke each year.
While not all stroke patients will be eligible for Solitaire, Gordhan said the value of the procedure is its high success rate in helping patients to return to their pre-stroke conditions and continue to contribute to society.
If we can return them to normal irrespective of age thats the game-changer, Gordhan said.
About 85 percent of strokes are ischemic, when a blood clot blocks blood flow or a narrowing artery limits blood flow to the brain.
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'Game Changer': New treatment gives stroke patients better than fighting chance