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STROKE DIVISION

STROKE CENTER WEBSITE LINK.

The Stroke Division combines the resources of acute clinical treatment, prevention education, rehabilitation, and clinical research to provide a complete continuum of care and a comprehensive approach to understanding, treating and preventing stroke.

Each year, 700,000 Americans suffer a stroke. Vanderbilt is on the buckle of the Stroke Belt, a southeasterly swath of the
U.S. where more strokes occur than anywhere else in the country. The Stroke Division was carved out of the Department of Neurology to uniquely handle this disease, the 3rd leading cause of death in
the nation and a leading factor in long-term disability.

In addition to maintaining a leadership role in Middle Tennessee, the Stroke Division at Vanderbilt participates regionally and nationally in the Stroke Belt Consortium, the Delta Stroke Task Force, the American Heart Association Stroke Team and in numerous National Institutes of Health-sponsored clinical drug studies.

Patients interested in joining stroke research studies by calling research coordinator Diane Brown at 615-936-0062. Patients who want to schedule non-study related appointments should call 615-936-1354. Upon referral, patients will be asked to fax their records to 615-936-1286.

Faculty
Dr. Howard Kirshner, a Vanderbilt neurologist for more than 25 years, leads the division. His practice runs the gamut, from prevention to acute stroke care through rehabilitation. In addition, he leads several on-going NIH or pharmaceutical company-sponsored clinical research studies. Dr. Kirshner also has an interest in neurobehavioral disorders and dementia.

Dr. Anne O'Duffy, an active clinician and researcher who recently came to Vanderbilt after training at the Mayo Clinic and practice experience in San Francisco. Dr. O’Duffy specializes in general neurology, migraine headaches and women's issues.

Dr. Adrian Jarquin-Valdivia, who recently came to Vanderbilt from the University of California at San Francisco, specializes in caring for stroke patients in the critical care setting. Dr. Jarquin-Valdivia is also involved in pioneering research related to medical ultrasound and transcranial Doppler testing.
Diane Brown, R.N., study nurse coordinator, worked as a neurology nurse for 11 years before joining Vanderbilt in 1999.

BethAnn McLaughlin, Ph.D. is an assistant professor in the Department of Neurology whose lab studies endogenous neuroprotective pathways in an effort to design safe and well tolerated therapeutics for the treatment of neurological injury. Dr. McLaughlin trained at the University of Pennsylvania at the Institute for Neurological Sciences and went on to a fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh in the Department of Neurobiology. She joined the faculty at Vanderbilt in 2003 and works with colleagues in neurosurgery, pharmacology and proteomics to develop profiles of stroke risk and damage using biomarkers and imaging.

Dr. Derek Riebau is an Assistant Professor of Neurology and is board certified in the subspecialty of Vascular Neurology. He completed residency and a vascular fellowship at Vanderbilt University. In addition to his inpatient and outpatient stroke practice, he is the Associate Director of the Neurology Residency program and the Neuroscience course in the School of Medicine at Vanderbilt University and is actively involved in medical student and resident education.

Education
A stroke occurs when a blood vessel carrying oxygen and nutrients to the brain becomes blocked by a clot (“ischemic stroke”) or bursts (“hemorrhagic stroke”). When an artery is obstructed, part of the brain cannot get the blood and oxygen it needs. As brain tissue becomes damaged, the parts of the body controlled by that brain region show symptoms of weakness, numbness, loss of vision, altered speech, etc. Strokes do not occur accidentally; risk factors, including smoking, diabetes and high blood pressure, contribute to the disorder. Educating the community about the disease is integral to comprehensive care. For instance, people must be made aware that high blood pressure increases the chance of stroke by five or six times, but controlling blood pressure reduces this risk substantially. If we controlled the “treatable” risk factors of stroke, the number of strokes occurring in the U.S. would be reduced by over half.

Even in the setting of an acute stroke, “clot-busting” medicines can greatly reduce the long-lasting effects of stroke, but patients must know the warning signs: dimmed vision in one eye, weakness on one side of the body, numbness, trouble speaking, or dizziness with other neurological symptoms. Patients must present to the Emergency Department within the first three hours after symptoms begin to benefit from this therapy.

The Stroke Division helps increase public awareness by participating regularly in community stroke screenings and by giving public talks throughout Middle Tennessee. For more information, consult the American Stroke Association at www.strokeassociation.org, or the Middle Tennessee chapter of the American Heart Association, www.americanheart.org or phone 615-340-4100.

Care
Anyone suffering a stroke can be seen at Vanderbilt Emergency Department by a physician working directly in conjunction with a member of the Stroke Division, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for acute care. The members of the Stroke Division work closely with Emergency Medicine, especially Dr. Jason Thurman.

The comprehensive care goes beyond an ED visit; patients can be referred by their primary care physician or by another neurologist to the Stroke Division members at The Vanderbilt Clinic.

Vanderbilt University Hospital has neurological intensive care beds specifically for people who have suffered acute stroke. Each patient has a neurologist and/or neurosurgeon and a critical care specialist, neurologist or anesthesiologist. After acute care, the Stroke Team participates in the patient’s rehabilitation.

Additionally, Vanderbilt's recognition as the only Level 1 trauma center in Middle Tennessee means a LifeFlight helicopter and crews of highly skilled nurses are just minutes away from reaching patients and returning them to Vanderbilt quickly.

Research
The Stroke Division actively participates in many national clinical trials and creates novel approaches to understanding the brain, bringing the latest advances in stroke medicine to Vanderbilt patients and helping forge the future of stroke care.

Please visit www.vanderbiltstrokecenter.com for more information on research opportunities in stroke.