PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

UTHealth Houston study: Artificial intelligence software improves endovascular thrombectomy treatment times for stroke patients

UTHealth Houston study: Artificial intelligence software improves endovascular thrombectomy treatment times for stroke patients
2023-09-18
(Press-News.org) The implementation of artificial intelligence-powered large vessel occlusion (LVO) detection software for acute stroke triage can improve endovascular thrombectomy treatment times, according to new research from UTHealth Houston.

The study, which was published today in JAMA Neurology, was led by co-first authors Youngran Kim, PhD, assistant professor of management, policy, and community health with UTHealth Houston School of Public Health; and Juan Carlos Martinez-Gutierrez, MD, a former surgery fellow in the Vivian L. Smith Department of Neurosurgery with McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, and as well as co-senior authors Sunil A. Sheth, MD, associate professor of neurology and director of the vascular neurology program with McGovern Medical School, and Luca Giancardo, PhD, associate professor at McWilliams School of Biomedical Informatics at UTHealth Houston.

LVO occurs when a major artery in the brain is blocked. Considered one of the more severe types of strokes, an LVO accounts for an estimated 24% to 46% of acute ischemic strokes. Prompt endovascular thrombectomy – a minimally invasive surgical procedure involving the removal of a blood clot from a blocked artery in the brain – can dramatically improve outcomes in patients with LVO acute ischemic stroke; however, its efficacy is highly time-dependent.

“The benefit of endovascular thrombectomy on functional recovery is time-sensitive, so early identification of patients with strokes with large vessel occlusions, and process improvements to accelerate in-hospital care, are critical,” Kim said. “Our study has shown that the implementation of AI software has improved workflows within the comprehensive stroke centers.”

To test how to improve in-hospital endovascular therapy workflows, researchers conducted a cluster-randomized, stepped-wedge clinical trial from Jan. 1, 2021, to Feb. 27, 2022, analyzing 243 patients with LVO stroke who presented at four comprehensive stroke centers in the Greater Houston area.

Viz LVO – artificial intelligence-enabled automated LVO detection from a computed tomography (CT) angiogram, coupled with secure messaging, was activated at the four sites in a random-stepped fashion. Once activated, clinicians and radiologists received real-time alerts to their mobile phones, notifying them of possible LVO within minutes of CT imaging completion. Members of the patient’s treatment team were also able to share information on cases in real time.

Critically, implementation of automated LVO detection software led to patients experiencing, on average, a statistically significant reduction of 11 minutes in time to thrombectomy initiation. Time from CT scan initiation to the start of endovascular therapy also fell by nearly 10 minutes.

“We are just at the beginning of automated machine-learning algorithms to benefit acute stroke care,” Giancardo said. “Many other applications are being developed, such as using CT angiograms to detect infarcted areas of the brain without advanced imaging, an NIH-funded effort by our research group which we recently published, or even the use of retina imaging as a proxy for brain imaging.”

The findings come shortly after the publication of another study led by Kim, Sheth, and other UTHealth Houston researchers, which found that, despite having worse stroke symptoms and living within comparable distances to comprehensive stroke centers, women with LVO acute ischemic stroke were less likely to be routed to the centers compared to men. Both studies are part of a broader effort to discover ways to improve stroke outcomes.

“Nearly 2 million brain cells die every minute the blockage remains, so speeding up treatments by 10 to 15 minutes can result in substantial improvements,” Sheth said. “Our study is the most rigorous of its kind to address the question of whether machine-learning software can result in a clinically meaningful improvement for patients with acute stroke, and here, we see that the answer is ‘yes.’”

Other co-authors with McGovern Medical School included Sergio Salazar-Marioni, MD; Muhammad Bilal Tariq, MD; Rania Abdelkhaleq, MPH; Arash Niktabe, BS; Anjan N. Ballekere, MS; Ananya Iyyangar, BS; Mai Le, BS; Hussain Azeem, BS; Charles Miller, PhD; Jon Tyson, MD, MPH; Sandi Shaw, RN; Peri Smith, RN; Mallory Cowan, RN; Isabel Gonzales, RN; Louise McCullough, MD, PhD; and Andrew Barreto, MD. Abdelkhaleq and Le are also with UTHealth Houston School of Public Health, and McCullough and Giancardo are also with The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Houston Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.

END

[Attachments] See images for this press release:
UTHealth Houston study: Artificial intelligence software improves endovascular thrombectomy treatment times for stroke patients UTHealth Houston study: Artificial intelligence software improves endovascular thrombectomy treatment times for stroke patients 2

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Economic burden of US youth violence injuries

2023-09-18
About The Study: This economic evaluation’s findings indicate that the economic burden of youth violence, including medical care, lost productivity, reduced quality of life from injury morbidity, and avoidable mortality, reached $122 billion in 2020, dominated by male firearm homicides. Prevention strategies can reduce this substantial burden.  Authors: Cora Peterson, Ph.D., of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, is the corresponding author. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2023.3235) Editor’s ...

Screen time and developmental performance among children at 1-3 years of age

2023-09-18
About The Study: Increased TV/DVD screen time from age 1 year negatively affected later development in this study of 57,980 children. To reduce the negative consequences of excessive media use, researchers and health care professionals should encourage family media management and recommend social support for parents who tend to rely on the media.  Authors: Midori Yamamoto, Ph.D., of Chiba University in Chiba, Japan, is the corresponding author. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2023.3643) Editor’s ...

School-based health centers, access to care, and income-based disparities

2023-09-18
About The Study: In this study using nationally representative survey data with difference-in-differences analysis of school-based health center (SBHC) adoption, SBHCs were associated with access to care and reduced income-based disparities. These findings support additional SBHC expansion.  Authors: Michel Boudreaux, Ph.D., of the University of Maryland in College Park, is the corresponding author.  To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/  (doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.34532) Editor’s ...

Buprenorphine dose and time to discontinuation among patients with opioid use disorder in the era of fentanyl

2023-09-18
About The Study: The results of this study of 6,499 patients initiating buprenorphine treatment between 2016 and 2020 suggest that the value of higher buprenorphine doses than currently recommended needs to be considered for improving retention in treatment.  Authors: Laura C. Chambers, Ph.D., M.P.H., of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, is the corresponding author.  To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/  (doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.34540) Editor’s Note: Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, ...

Telecare cuts costs, boosts quality of life for dementia patients

2023-09-18
A UCSF telecare program that improves outcomes for patients with dementia and lightens the load for unpaid caregivers also has the surprising bonus of cutting Medicare costs, according to UC San Francisco research. In the study, publishing in JAMA Internal Medicine on Sept. 18, 2023, researchers, led by UCSF, compared the Medicare costs of 780 patients with dementia. The patients were randomized 2:1 to receive Care Ecosystem support – which included medical and practical assistance – or their usual care for a 12-month period. Both groups were similar in age, severity of dementia ...

Higher buprenorphine doses associated with improved retention in treatment for opioid use disorder

2023-09-18
Individuals with opioid use disorder who were prescribed a lower buprenorphine dose were 20% more likely to discontinue treatment than those on a higher dose, according to a study of patients prescribed buprenorphine in Rhode Island from 2016 to 2020, as fentanyl became widely available. The study, published today in JAMA Network Open, was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health, and conducted by researchers at Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island; NIDA and the Rhode Island ...

Tracking down the formation of cardenolides in plants

Tracking down the formation of cardenolides in plants
2023-09-18
Plants produce an impressive array of metabolites, including many medically valuable steroids. Well-known examples of this class of substances obtained from plants are cardenolides. As early as 1785, the British physician William Withering (1741-1799) published a book on the red foxglove and its use in medicine (An account of the foxglove, and some of its medical uses: with practical remarks on dropsy, and other diseases. Birmingham 1785).  He had found out in experiments that taking extracts ...

The surprising origin of a deadly hospital infection

2023-09-18
Hospital staff spend a significant amount of time working to protect patients from acquiring infections while they are being cared for in the hospital. They employ various methods from hand hygiene to isolation rooms to rigorous environmental sanitation. Despite these efforts, hospital-onset infections still occur—the most common of which is caused by the bacterium Clostridioides difficile, or C. diff, the culprit of almost half a million infections in the U.S. each year. Surprising findings from a new study in Nature Medicine suggest that the burden of C. diff infection may be less a matter of hospital transmission and more a result of characteristics associated ...

Mature sperm lack intact mitochondrial DNA, study finds

2023-09-18
New research provides insight about the bedrock scientific principle that mitochondrial DNA — the distinct genetic code embedded in the organelle that serves as the powerplant of every cell in the body — is exclusively passed down by the mother. The study, a collaboration among Oregon Health & Science University and other institutions, published today in the journal Nature Genetics. Scientists have long recognized the fact that mitochondrial DNA, or mtDNA, comes exclusively from egg cells in humans, meaning only the mother contributes the genetic code carried by ...

Research identifies new potential hurdle for nano-based therapies

Research identifies new potential hurdle for nano-based therapies
2023-09-18
HOUSTON ― Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have discovered that certain nano-based cancer therapies may be less effective in younger patients, highlighting the need for further investigation into the impact of aging on the body’s ability to respond to treatment. The researchers found age-related differences are due to how effectively the liver filters the bloodstream. Younger livers are more efficient at this process, which helps limit toxins in the blood but also filters out beneficial treatments, potentially rendering them ineffective. The study, published today in ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Climate crisis could force wild vanilla plants and pollinating insects apart, threatening global supply

Teens report spending 21% of each driving trip looking at their phone

Study explores the ‘social norms’ of distracted driving among teens

Diver-operated microscope brings hidden coral biology into focus

Enhancing the “feel-good” factor of urban vegetation using AI and street view images

A single genetic mutation may have made humans more vulnerable to cancer than chimpanzees

Innovative nanocomposite hydrogel shows promise for cartilage regeneration in osteoarthritis treatment

2025 Guangci Laboratory Medicine Innovation and Development Conference

LabMed Discovery is included in the ICI World Journals database

LabMed Discovery is included in the China Open Access Journal (COAJ) database

Vaccination support program reduces pneumonia-related mortality by 25 percent among the elderly

Over decades, a healthy lifestyle outperforms metformin in preventing onset of Type 2 diabetes

Mental health disorders, malaria, and heart disease most affected by covid pandemic

Green transition will boost UK productivity

Billions voted in 2024, but major new report exposes cracks in global democracy

Researchers find “forever chemicals” impact the developing male brain

Quantum leap in precision sensing across technologies

Upgrading biocrude oil into sustainable aviation fuel using zeolite-supported iron-molybdenum carbide nanocatalysts

For effective science communication, ‘just the facts’ isn’t good enough

RT-EZ: A golden gate assembly toolkit for streamlined genetic engineering of rhodotorula toruloides

Stem Cell Reports announces five new early career editors

Support networks may be the missing link for college students who seek help for excessive drinking

The New England Journal of Medicine shines spotlight on forensic pathology

Scientists discover protein that helps lung cancer spread to the brain

Perceived social status tied to cardiovascular risks in women but not in men

Brain tumor growth patterns may help inform patient care management

This might be America's first campus tree inventory

Emoji use may impact relationship outcomes

Individual merit, not solidarity, prioritized by early childhood education policies

Preclinical study unlocks a mystery of rapid mouth healing

[Press-News.org] UTHealth Houston study: Artificial intelligence software improves endovascular thrombectomy treatment times for stroke patients