UCL Institute of Neurology

Much of the dramatic change in the outlook for many stroke patients has come about as a result of carefully conducted clinical trials testing new treatments, says Martin Brown, Professor of Stroke Medicine at the UCL Institute of Neurology, in an article in the latest Raconteur report “Understanding Stroke”.

Dr Andreas Charidimou, a PhD student at the UCL Institute of Neurology, has been awarded the 2012 Belgian Stroke Council Award, for his work "Spectrum of transient focal neurological episodes in cerebral amyloid angiopathy: multicentre MRI cohort study and meta-analysis", a collaborative study undertaken in the UK and Belgium.

A paper highlighting early results from the International Carotid Stenting Study (ICSS), a UCL-led multi-centre clinical trial which compared two treatments for carotid narrowing was recently listed in the Lancet as one of their ten most cited papers in 2010-2011. Narrowing of one of the carotid arteries in the neck (stenosis), which supply blood to the brain, is one of the major causes of stroke and is usually caused by deposits of fat in the wall of the artery, known as atherosclerosis.

Researchers in the Department of Brain Repair and Rehabilitation have found that giving the drug rotigotine as a skin patch can improve inattention in some stroke patients.

Extracts from the Provost's newsletter.

"Warmest congratulations this week to:

Congratulations to Dr Andreas Charidimou who has been awarded a prestigious Junior Investigator Award for outstanding research in stroke by a young investigator at the  XXI European Stroke Conference 2012.

Congratulations to Professor Xavier Golay (Department of Brain Repair & Rehabilitation), who has been awarded a networking grant from the European Science Foundation COST office, the first grant of this kind awarded to UCL. The prestigious award will be used to support the Arterial Spin Labelling (ASL) Initiative in Dementia (AID) Action network, which aims to coordinate research in this area and optimise the use of facilities already existing in Europe. The network, which runs for four years, held its first networking event with the official Kick-Off Meeting in Brussels in December 2011.

Read more>> European Institute for Biomedical Imaging Research (see page 30) and COST website

Listen to Dr David Werring from UCL Institute of Neurology and the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery’s Stroke Research Group, as he discusses the importance of recognising cerebral amyloid angiopathy, a neurological condition that doctors believe increases the risk of haemorrhagic stroke and dementia.

We are delighted to announce that Professor Clare Fowler, UCL Professor of Uro-Neurology at the Institute and Honorary Consultant Uro-Neurologist at the NHNN, UCLH Trust, has been awarded a CBE in the New Year Honours List "for services to Uro-Neurology".

Professor Martin M Brown (IoN Department Brain Repair and Rehabilitation)  gave the 6th annual Stroke Association Royal Lecture in the presence of HRH Princess Michael of Kent at Spencer House on 15th November 2011.

Patients who suffer from severe cluster headaches are being offered new hope thanks to a revolutionary treatment at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery (NHNN).

Cognitive tests and MRI scans have shown significant differences in the brains of fighter pilots when compared to a control group, according to a new study led by scientists from the Institute.

Research led by Professor Martin Brown (Department of Brain Repair and Rehabilitation) and published in the Lancet finds that stroke patients over 70 who get stents to keep their arteries open, may double their risk of having another stroke or dying, compared to patients who get surgery (carotid endarterectomy).

We are delighted to congratulate two researchers based at Queen Square, Dr Paul Bays (IoN Department of Brain Repair and Rehabilitation) and Dr Fiona McNab (Wellcome Department of Imaging Neuroscience), on being awarded Wellcome Trust Career Development Fellowships.

The Wellcome Career Development Fellowship scheme provides an opportunity for postdoctoral scientists from across the remits of the Wellcome Trust's funding streams to become independent research scientists and undertake high-quality research.

Professor Clare J Fowler has been awarded the 2010 St Peter’s Medal by the British Association of Urological Surgeons.

Although most stroke survivors learn to walk again up to a third fail to regain useful function of their arm.

David Werring (Department of Brain Repair and Rehabilitation, Stroke Research Group) has been awarded a £940,000 joint program grant from the Stroke Association and British Heart Foundation after a rigorous competition.  The funding will support a 5-year program of stroke brain imaging and genetic research.

The latest results from the longest-running study yet confirm that surgery is better than artery-opening angioplasty in preventing strokes caused by blockage of the carotid artery, the largest vessel carrying blood to the brain.

David Choi (Department of Brain Repair & Rehabilitation, Spinal Repair Unit) received €1.6 million for a four-year project, which aims to use unique cells from the nose, called olfactory ensheathing cells, in patients who have had an injury to the nerves connecting the spinal cord to the arm. He explains: “At the moment, these injuries are associated with permanent severe pain and paralysis of the arm. Transplantation of these cells in experimental models has shown improvements in function, and we aim to study these effects now in patients.”