Comprehensive Observational and Longitudinal study on the Outbreak of Stroke-related Spasticity focusing on the Early Onset management with Botulinum NeuroToxin (COLOSSEO-BoNT): protocol for a real-world prospective observational study on upper limb spasticity.

Introduction: Poststroke spasticity (PSS) affects up to 40% of patients who had a stroke. Botulinum neurotoxin type A (BoNT-A) has been shown to improve spasticity, but the optimal timing of its application remains unclear. While several predictors of upper limb PSS are known, their utility in clinical practice in relation to BoNT-A treatment has yet to be fully elucidated.

Intravenous thrombolysis in young stroke patients: results from the SITS-ISTR.

Objective: To assess safety and efficacy of thrombolysis in 18- to 50-year-old patients compared to those aged 51 to 80 years recorded in the Safe Implementation of Thrombolysis in Stroke-International Stroke Thrombolysis Register (SITS-ISTR).

Methods: A total of 27,671 patients aged 18-80 years treated with IV alteplase within 4.5 hours of symptom onset were enrolled in SITS-ISTR between 2002 and 2010.

Which model of stroke unit is better for stroke patient management?

The increasing prevalence of cerebrovascular diseases has made urgent the need to develop timely and effective treatment strategies to tackle this health problem. Stroke units (SUs) appear to be the ideal setting where the management of acute stroke patients, including specific treatments as thrombolysis, may be optimized. Which model of SU gives the best results is still an unsettled issue.

Chlamydia pneumoniae infection in young stroke patients: a case--control study.

Retrospective and cross-sectional studies have suggested that both bacterial and viral infections may be risk factors for atherosclerosis, ischemic stroke and acute coronary events. The correlation between Chlamydia pneumoniae and atherosclerosis remains a source of controversy. Our case-control study is aimed at evaluating the frequency of C.