title: Non-pharmacological neuroprotection: role of emergency stroke management.
abstract: Acute stroke should be considered a medical emergency, where actions taken in the first hours are fundamental for achieving recovery of the damaged cerebral tissue and a better prognosis for the patient. Recanalization and neuroprotective treatment has been used with mixed results. The effectiveness observed in the first hours with thrombolytic drug treatment is only applicable to a small percentage of patients, and attempts to widen this treatment window have not yet proved fruitful. Pharmacological neuroprotective treatment has not yet demonstrated the clinical effectiveness observed in experimental models. The concept of neuroprotection in cerebral ischemia also involves a series of mechanisms that take place at the cerebral level following vascular occlusion. In this context, it should be borne in mind that a series of physiological functions usually involved in the cerebral metabolism (control of blood pressure, of temperature, of glycemia and of arterial oxygen saturation) play a key role in modulation of the ischemic process. Changes in the control of these mechanisms may aggravate the process of cerebral damage in the first hours of ischemic stroke. In this work we review the prognostic importance of the main mechanisms that may influence the acute phase of cerebral ischemic stroke, as well as their therapeutic management and control in the clinical situation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Division of Vascular Neurology, Stroke Unit, Hospital Clínico Universitario, Santiago de Compostela, Spain. rleiram@meditex.es
authors.forename: Rogelio
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Leira
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Blanco
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rodríguez-Yáñez
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Flores
authors.forename: Jorge
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: García-García
mesh_terms: D000959:Antihypertensive Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D001831:Body Temperature; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000097:blood / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D004632:Emergency Medical Services; D006801:Humans; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D007036:Hypothermia, Induced / Q000379:methods; D015201:Meta-Analysis as Topic; D010100:Oxygen / Q000097:blood; D010102:Oxygen Inhalation Therapy; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D020521:Stroke / Q000097:blood / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*
chemical_list: D000959:Antihypertensive Agents; D001786:Blood Glucose; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents; D010100:Oxygen