Study Targets Brain Swelling After Strokes

Researchers in Australia say they can reduce brain swelling from strokes in lab animals, and are trying to apply the technique to humans.

Doctoral student Renee Turner and her associates at the University of Adelaide noted that swelling was a common complication of stroke and occurred when water accumulated in brain tissue, compressing it and causing tissue death.

They also noted that there was a similar process in the skin called neurogenic inflammation.

Neurogenic inflammation is triggered by nerve cells that release a compound called substance P after injury, but researchers found that the swelling was reduced in skin when substance P-blocking drugs were administered.

The team examined the brains of laboratory rats that had suffered strokes and found substance P in the brain tissue. When the rats were given substance P-blocking compounds, the swelling in their brains went down and they suffered less damage and lived longer than rats who did not receive this treatment.

The researchers are now looking for compounds that will block substance P in humans.

This potentially provides the first new clinical pathway to reducing brain swelling in 50 years, Turner said. It should improve the chances of survival after a stroke and reduce the risk of long-term disabilities, she said.