They were “shocked” to discover the impact of head positioning on stroke patients.
During a stroke “each minute saved is 2 million neurons saved” Professor Igor Sibon, Head of the Department of Neurology – Bordeaux University Hospital, recently reminded us. We must act quickly and well by adapting to the circumstances. Because stroke can be caused byblockage of a blood vessel in the brain due to a clot (80% of cases) or by the rupture of a blood vessel. When a clot blocks a vessel, the positioning of the victim’s head could influence the prognosis of the stroke. This is what American researchers showed during the International Stroke Conference 2024 which was held in Phoenix in the United States from February 7 to 9.
These scientists started from pilot work which demonstrated a 20% increase in blood flow in patients suffering from stroke due to occlusion of large vessels (involving a major artery in the brain), awaiting thrombectomy (intervention which aims to remove a clot to restore blood circulation in the brain), including the positioning of the head was 0 degrees i.e. flat. They wanted to determine whether positioning these people at 0 degrees was associated with greater stability and/or clinical improvement, compared to those whose heads were slightly elevated. at 30 degrees. Optimizing blood flow to the brain during a stroke helps minimize the risk of neurological deficits and disability.
“The recruitment of participants was stopped prematurely”
“Recruitment of participants was stopped prematurely (at 92 patients from 12 stroke centers in the United States, editor’s note) due to theexceptional efficiency head positioning at 0 degrees” they inform in their conclusions. They found that 24 hours after surgery and 7 days after hospital discharge, patients whose heads were positioned at 0 degrees had fewer neurological deficits than those whose head was tilted 30 degrees before surgery.
These results suggest that gravitational force may play an important role in stroke management. “Three months after surgery, there was no difference in outcomes for patients in the two groups. But he is exciting to see that we were able to discharge patients from the hospital with fewer disabilities requiring rehabilitation” said Dr. Anne W. Alexandrov in a press release from the American Heart Association. “We expected a significant effect but we were quite shocked –in the good sense of the word– by the magnitude of the benefit obtained from such a simple intervention.” According to these scientists, “THE zero degree head positioning is a safe and effective strategy to optimize blood flow to the brain until thrombectomy can be performed, and it should be considered the standard of care for stroke patients before thrombectomy.”.