Deans' stroke musings: Serum BDNF levels as a potential prognostic marker for functional recovery in stroke: Preliminary findings from a prospective observational study

Changing stroke rehab and research worldwide now.Time is Brain! trillions and trillions of neurons that DIE each day because there are NO effective hyperacute therapies besides tPA(only 12% effective). I have 523 posts on hyperacute therapy, enough for researchers to spend decades proving them out. These are my personal ideas and blog on stroke rehabilitation and stroke research. Do not attempt any of these without checking with your medical provider. Unless you join me in agitating, when you need these therapies they won't be there.

What this blog is for:

My blog is not to help survivors recover, it is to have the 10 million yearly stroke survivors light fires underneath their doctors, stroke hospitals and stroke researchers to get stroke solved. 100% recovery. The stroke medical world is completely failing at that goal, they don't even have it as a goal. Shortly after getting out of the hospital and getting NO information on the process or protocols of stroke rehabilitation and recovery I started searching on the internet and found that no other survivor received useful information. This is an attempt to cover all stroke rehabilitation information that should be readily available to survivors so they can talk with informed knowledge to their medical staff. It lays out what needs to be done to get stroke survivors closer to 100% recovery. It's quite disgusting that this information is not available from every stroke association and doctors group.

Sunday, March 1, 2026

Serum BDNF levels as a potential prognostic marker for functional recovery in stroke: Preliminary findings from a prospective observational study

Prognistication DOES NOTHING FOR SURVIVOR RECOVERY! Are you really that blitheringly stupid? Can you even get dressed in the morning?

Serum BDNF levels as a potential prognostic marker for functional recovery in stroke: Preliminary findings from a prospective observational study

Seyoung Shin 1,

Heegoo Kim 1,

Dae Hyun Kim 2,

Won Hyuk Chang 2,3*

1 Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University School of Medicine, Seongnam, Republic of Korea,

2 Department of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea,

3 Department of Health Science and Technology, SAIHST, Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, Republic of Korea * wh.chang@samsung.com, iamchang@skku.edu

Abstract

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) crosses the blood-brain barrier and may serve as a marker of neuroplasticity. This study evaluated whether serum levels of mature BDNF, proBDNF, and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) can predict functional recovery after stroke. In this prospective observational study, 93 patients with unilateral stroke and motor impairment were recruited. Clinical, and demographic data, as well as serum levels of mature BDNF, proBDNF, and MMP-9 were col lected. Functional assessments measuring stroke severity, cognition, motor function, balance, and mood were conducted at three timepoints: after acute care (T0), 2 weeks post-rehabilitation (T1), and 3 months post-onset (T2). Mature BDNF signifi cantly decreased from T0 to T2 (p = 0.003), while proBDNF remained stable. MMP-9 declined consistently across timepoints (p < 0.001). MMP-9 levels at baseline dif fered by BDNF genotype (p < 0.05). However, none of the biomarkers independently predicted functional recovery. Functional outcomes improved significantly over time (p < 0.001), with baseline functional scores being the strongest predictors at T1 and T2. Although these biomarkers were not independent predictors of recovery, their longitudinal trajectories may reflect underlying neurobiological recovery mechanisms during rehabilitation, although their prognostic utility remains inconclusive