This should be able to be repurposed to identify lack of blood flow post-stroke so an objective diagnosis can tell where the dead and dying areas are. Then use that knowledge to create protocols that address those problem areas. But since we have NO stroke leadership or strategy this will fall thru the cracks like all stroke research. There is never any followup. You will need to hire your own researchers to address this.
http://www.alphagalileo.org/ViewItem.aspx?ItemId=166680&CultureCode=en
A network of over 200 scientists, clinicians and industry partners
developed a cost-effective diagnostic tool for measuring the tell-tale
signs of dementia and Alzheimer’s. The tool uses a new, non-invasive
technique to measure blood flow to the brain, known as Arterial Spin
Labelling (ASL). The network set a reference for the best possible way
of measuring blood flow, allowing all researchers using ASL in
neurodegeneration to compare the network’s results. The three main
vendors of MRI machines – GE Healthcare, Siemens Healthcare, and Philips
Healthcare – have already taken up the tool. A company spinning out of
the network has raised £1.1 million from the UK’s National Health
Service to improve the calibration of ASL devices in order to ensure
consistent and reliable results.
Dementia is a major brain disease associated with memory loss,
personality changes and confusion. It can rob people of their
independence and cause profound distress for individuals and their
families.
The condition also represents a significant economic burden. Caring
for people affected by dementia accounts for around 1% of global GDP. In
Europe, where the number of people aged over 65 is growing, the impact
of neurodegenerative diseases could rise.
While the pharmaceutical industry continues to work on therapies that
could stem the progression of the illness, imaging experts are
developing technologies that can diagnose dementia – even before
patients notice classic symptoms such as memory loss .
MRI machines can show anatomical changes in the brain, such as the
loss of dying neurones due to Alzheimer’s disease. A technique, known
as Arterial Spin Labelling (ASL) , offers something new: a non-invasive
way to measure blood flow to the brain.
By magnetising blood in major arteries and following its path to the
brain, experts can deduce whether brain cells are being nourished with
the oxygen and glucose they need to survive. Low rates of blood flow –
known as perfusion – to neuronal cells suggests something may be wrong.
COST Action BM1103 brought together a network of over 200 scientists
and clinicians, working alongside industry partners, to develop this
cost-effective diagnostic tool that uses the ASL technique. The key was
to provide researchers and clinicians with a reliable and comparable way
to measure the tell-tale signs of dementia .
“After 15 years of developing ASL around the world, there were a
plethora of methodologies and techniques,” says Professor Xavier Golay
of University College London. “It was a nightmare for anyone who wanted
to work in this field because they did not know where to start or how to
achieve the best results .”
Through a COST-funded meeting in Amsterdam in October 2012, members
of the COST Action joined forces to find the best possible method to
measure perfusion , based on a thorough analysis of the literature. This
led to a paper aimed at people working in this area. It was finally
published in January 2015 and has become a reference for scientists in
the field .
“It has really changed the field, reshaping it in amazing way,” says
Professor Golay. “This allows all of us using ASL in neurodegeneration
to compare our results and it has even been taken up by the three main
vendors of MRI machines – GE Healthcare, Siemens Healthcare, and Philips
Healthcare. In terms of impact this is huge.”
As another outcome of the Action, Professor Golay’s spin-out company–
Gold Standard Phantoms Limited –has raised £1.1 million from the UK’s
National Health Service to improve the calibration of ASL devices in
order to ensure consistent and reliable results.
Members of this Action are working with the Quantitative Imaging
Biomarkers Alliance (QIBA) to have ASL recognised globally as a
biomarker for dementia , and members continue to collaborate through the
ASL Network.
http://www.cost.eu/media/cost_stories/measuring-brain-blood-flow-helps-diagnose-dementia
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