Please are you able to introduce yourself and tell us about your background, in addition to about your role at CERENOVUS?

I’m a clinician and scientist who has served as an interventional neuroradiologist and endovascular neurosurgeon for over 20 years in various countries in Europe. Currently, at CERENOVUS, I serve because the Head of Worldwide Medical Affairs. CERENOVUS, a part of Johnson & Johnson MedTech, is an emerging leader in neurovascular care and is concentrated on providing solutions utilized in this area.

CERENOVUS is a world leader in neurovascular care. Are you able to tell us more about your essential mission statement?

Stroke is the second leading reason behind death globally. At CERENOVUS, we push the boundaries of what’s possible in stroke care with the intention to deliver on our promise of adjusting the trajectory of stroke. This commitment is inspired by our long heritage and dedication to protecting patients from stroke-related disabilities and we provide a broad portfolio of devices utilized in the endovascular treatment of hemorrhagic and ischemic stroke in order that patients can get back to their fully functioning lives.

Strokes occur when the blood supply to a part of the brain is cut off. Are you able to tell us more about why stroke occurs and what happens to the brain cells when their blood supply is cut off?

A stroke occurs when a blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked by a clot or bursts. Due to this fact, there are two sorts of stroke: ischemic and hemorrhagic.

Ischemic strokes – that are probably the most common and account for 87% of all cases – occur when a blood clot travels to a vessel within the brain and cuts off the blood supply. This prevents brain tissue from getting oxygen and nutrients, and brain cells can begin to die in minutes.

The opposite sort of stroke, hemorrhagic, are often less common than ischemic strokes but could be more severe. Some of these strokes are brought on by a brain aneurysm burst or rupture of weakened blood vessels.

Through higher public awareness, we will reduce the stroke burden. What are among the signs of stroke that folks should pay attention to?

One of the best solution to remember the signs and symptoms of stroke is the acronym F.A.S.T.:

F – Facial drooping

A – Arm weakness or difficulty raising one or each arms

S – Speech difficulty or slurred speech

T – Time to call for emergency help

For those who suspect that you simply or anyone is having a stroke, it’s critical to hunt emergency care immediately. Those of us within the neurovascular field often say that “time is brain” – which means the more time that goes by without treatment, the more brain cells die, subsequently impeding probabilities of recovery or survival. Acting F.A.S.T. at the primary signs of stroke symptoms may help patients get the timely treatments they should not only survive but in addition to recuperate and have fully functioning lives.

But it surely’s not only the signs and symptoms of stroke that patients should pay attention to. It is necessary to notice that communities of color are disproportionally affected by stroke – often affected by pre-existing conditions that increase the danger of stroke and having poorer experiences relating to timely treatment and access to stroke care. At CERENOVUS, we’re working to handle these disparities in stroke care by educating patients on the healthy lifestyle decisions they will make to lower their risk of stroke, helping establish trust in healthcare systems, and improving facility preparedness so stroke patients could be quickly identified and triaged.

All these aspects in concert – quickly recognizing the signs and symptoms of stroke, understanding the importance of timely medical care, and taking healthy motion to scale back your risk of stroke – are necessary messages that everybody should know.

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Many cases of stroke are preventable. What are among the risk aspects for stroke, and the way do you suspect people can reduce their individual risk of stroke?

Up to 90% of strokes are preventable. One in all the best ways to scale back the danger of stroke is by maintaining a healthy lifestyle. This includes managing conditions like hypertension, diabetes, obesity, and atrial fibrillation (AFib), in addition to stopping smoking, eating a healthy weight loss plan, and exercising often.  

In keeping with the World Stroke Organization, 1 in 4 of us could have a stroke in our lifetime. Are you able to tell us more about how strokes are treated?

The 2 sorts of strokes are treated in another way. In an ischemic stroke brought on by blood clots, a procedure called mechanical thrombectomy (MT) – which uses a catheter threaded up the femoral or radial artery to remove a clot from a patient’s artery inside the brain – has proven successful with greater than half of patients treated regaining functional independence.

The earlier MT is performed – and the way quickly the clot could be extracted within the variety of passes performed – the upper the prospect of success. When MT achieves substantial or excellent “reperfusion,” or restoration of blood flow to the brain, from the primary pass, patients experience the best advantages. At CERENOVUS, we’ve created the CERENOVUS Stroke Solutions™ portfolio, which offers a comprehensive and integrated suite of devices to assist physicians in mechanical thrombectomy procedures. Developed through strong research and clinical insights, the CERENOVUS portfolio is designed to handle real-world scenarios that physicians may face.

For hemorrhagic strokes, treatment options may include interventional procedures to stop the bleeding. CERENOVUS offers a collection of products to treat aneurysms and vascular abnormalities which are also based on research and insights, including embolic coils, stents, and vascular reconstruction devices.

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How can life be affected after affected by a stroke? Are you able to tell us more about among the wide-ranging disabilities that stroke survivors may experience?

Strokes can have life-altering results. The essential disability that results from a stroke is paralysis or motor control. Strokes may also lead to sensory disturbances, reminiscent of the lack to feel temperature, touch, position, or pain. Sensory deficits could impact the flexibility to acknowledge objects and might lead to the lack to even recognize one’s own limbs. These sensory disturbances can result in chronic pain that affects the flexibility to operate.

Nonetheless, it isn’t only physical disabilities that result from a stroke. One in all every 4 stroke victims will suffer from aphasia, which is an issue understanding or using language. This might affect one’s ability to convey thoughts through writing and words, oftentimes resulting in frustration and emotional disturbance. Depression can be not unusual in patients following a stroke. So while the changes in physical ability could be more immediately recognizable, the mental health points of getting a stroke are also necessary to discover and treat.

The theme of World Stroke Day 2022 is ‘Save #Precioustime.’ What does this theme mean to you, and why is timely access to quality stroke care so critical?

I believe this yr’s theme is spot on because relating to stroke, time is incredibly precious. The longer a stroke goes untreated, the greater the chances are high of patients experiencing long-term disability and even death.

For each minute that somebody has a stroke, an estimated 1.9 million brain cells are lost. So, since time equals brain cells, the quicker an individual could be treated for stroke, the more likely that person’s brain – and subsequently the function of arms, legs, speech, or pondering ability – can recuperate.

What do you suspect the essential advantages are of social media campaigns and awareness events like World Stroke Day? Are you hopeful that through these awareness campaigns, the signs of a stroke can be recognized earlier and treatment accessed sooner?

Stroke is incredibly dangerous and, unfortunately, fairly common – as I discussed, it’s the second leading reason behind death globally. It’s so common, in reality, that somebody has a stroke every 40 seconds, and 13.7 million people experience their first stroke every yr. Fast response and treatment when a stroke occurs make an enormous difference in recovery and may sometimes mean the difference between life and death. This makes awareness opportunities like World Stroke Day and other social media campaigns critical for information sharing. I think that by increasing education across the signs, symptoms, and risk aspects for stroke, we will make a big difference, as a more aware and informed public can take motion and help save lives.

But it surely’s not only social media campaigns which are making a difference. Advocacy organizations like Get Ahead of Stroke and MT2020+ – and their partnership with industry leaders like CERENOVUS – are usually not only working to create public awareness but drive real change. Through these efforts, updated emergency medical services triage and transport protocols for stroke patients within the U.S. have been achieved, and access to mechanical thrombectomy procedures worldwide has increased.

Image Credit: Puwadol Jaturawutthichai/Shutterstock

What are the subsequent steps for you and CERENOVUS?

As I’ve already shared, we’re committed to changing the trajectory of stroke in order that patients can return to their lives. This implies we’re extremely focused on continued research and development in order that we will provide physicians with the tools they need to handle unmet clinical needs.

Developed through strong research and clinical insights, the CERENOVUS portfolio is designed to handle real-world scenarios that physicians may face. The ischemic portfolio particularly, is informed by the CERENOVUS Neuro Thromboembolic Initiative (NTI). NTI has a deep understanding of assorted clot types and is within the unique position to make use of insights from scientific studies to create revolutionary ischemic products that help change the trajectory of stroke.

I’m delighted as a physician to have the ability to support the work of CERENOVUS and its NTI team as they proceed to innovate and convey latest products to market inside each the ischemic and hemorrhagic portfolios over the approaching months and into 2023.

Where can readers find more information?

Visit https://www.jnjmedicaldevices.com/en-US/condition/stroke for more information on stroke, risk aspects, and treatment options.

To learn more about CERENOVUS and its solutions, visit https://www.jnjmedtech.com/en-US/corporations/cerenovus.

Concerning the Dr. Patrick Brouwer

Dr. Patrick Brouwer is a clinician and scientist who has made significant contributions in the sector of interventional neuroradiology and endovascular surgery. Before joining CERENOVUS as Head of Worldwide Medical Affairs, he served in senior staff positions for over 20 years as a neurointerventionalist at various university hospitals in Europe. As a key opinion leader in his field, Patrick has published near 100 scientific papers and book chapters and lectured, including for invited professorships, on greater than 400 occasions all over the world on a wide range of topics related to neurointervention.

Patrick has moreover contributed by serving in various board positions across key societies, reminiscent of the European Society of Minimally Invasive Neurological Therapy (ESMINT) and the World Federation of Interventional and Therapeutic Neuroradiology (WFITN). He received his medical degree, with honors, from the Free University within the Netherlands.