The SMARTChip Stroke Study

Stroke is one of the leading causes of death and disability in the UK and currently costs the country £7bn per year. There is an overwhelming need to accurately and rapidly triage patients to allow best use of finite NHS specialist resources for the treatment of stroke. A simple blood test of substances (the purines) that result from cellular metabolism and are produced in excess when brain cells are starved of oxygen and glucose (as occurs during a stroke) is proposed. The sensors designed by the investigators are used to measure blood purines during a procedure in which blood flow to the brain is reduced to allow surgical interventions on the major arteries that supply the brain. Previous studies by the investigators have shown that as soon as blood flow to the brain is reduced, purines are produced within minutes and are detectable in systemic arterial blood. The current project will now compare the levels of purines in the blood of stroke patients and controls. The purines will be measured on admission to hospital and 24 hours later. The occurrence and magnitude of a stroke will be determined by an MRI scan given between 24 and 72hrs after admission. This study will establish whether purines are elevated in the blood of stroke patients on admission to hospital compared to healthy controls, and whether this correlates with the size of the stroke and damage to the brain.