Stroke in the news…
With stroke a leading cause of disability worldwide, plenty of interesting research is going on. Here are some of the bigger recent stories.
With stroke a leading cause of disability, there is plenty of research going on around the world… as well as the subject of health and care reviews within the UK. Here are some of the bigger stories of the last few weeks - just click onto the pink links for the full story!
Social isolation raises the risk of stroke, heart disease, and early death
In a major new report, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has highlighted the connection between social connection and health outcomes. The report reveals that one in six people globally experience loneliness, a condition that can lead to reduced health and premature death. The WHO calls for immediate, coordinated action across governments and communities to address this growing public health concern.
Scotland study links deprivation to stroke survival rates
A call has been made for a rethink of health service delivery after a study suggested people who have a stroke were more likely to die within a year if they lived in more deprived areas.
Aberdeen University researchers analysed data from almost 50,000 patients and found stroke patients in the most deprived areas were younger and had more co-existing health conditions than those in less deprived areas. The treatment patients received also differed according to where they lived.
https://www.abdn.ac.uk/news/24532/
NHS “repeatedly failing” in care of stroke patients, watchdog says
Figures from the Sentinel stroke national audit programme (SSNAP), which assesses the quality of stroke care in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, show that just 46.6% of patients are directly admitted to a specialist stroke unit within four hours of symptoms starting.
A report in the Guardian says that the health ombudsman added that the number of investigations it had conducted over poor stroke care, including not spotting symptoms and delays to diagnosis, rose by two-thirds in the four financial years to March 2025, from 17 to 28. The number of complaints also rose over this period from 318 to 396.
Rebecca Hilsenrath, the chief executive of England’s health ombudsman service, said these included repeated failings in diagnosis, nursing care, communication, and treatment of patients with strokes.
Early blood-thinning treatment shown to be safe and effective for stroke patients
Patients with atrial fibrillation who have experienced a stroke would benefit greatly from earlier treatment, according to a new study from University College London (UCL).
The researchers found that starting direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs, which thin the blood to prevent it from clotting as quickly) within four days of having a stroke was safe, with no increase in bleeding into the brain. Additionally, early initiation of treatment significantly reduced the risk of another stroke due to bleeding or artery blockage by 30% compared to those who started treatment later.
https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2025/jun/early-blood-thinning-treatment-safe-and-effective-stroke-patients
Drinking unsweetened tea linked to reduced risk of incident cardiovascular disease
Evidence from the UK Biobank has shown that consuming unsweetened tea is associated with a reduced risk of incident CVD, CAD, stroke, and HF. In contrast, no significant associations were observed for sugar-sweetened or artificially sweetened tea. These findings indicate that drinking several cups of unsweetened tea each day may contribute positively to the prevention of CVD, independent of genetic risk factors.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12167100/
Oxford University to lead new £50m MRC Centre to develop brain stimulation device-based therapies
A new Medical Research Council Centre of Research Excellence (MRC CoRE) aims to develop brain stimulation devices to treat conditions such as Parkinson’s, dementia, stroke and childhood epilepsy.
The team will exploit knowledge of neural dynamics as they develop novel interventions and technology – ranging from brain implants to non-invasive and wearable devices – that could improve how the brain and body functions.
Photo by Hümâ H. Yardım on Unsplash
