Publications by authors named "Jennifer Majersik"
Objectives: Previous research demonstrated that the numerical Cincinnati Prehospital Stroke Scale (CPSS) identifies large vessel occlusion (LVO) at similar rates compared to dedicated LVO screening tools. We aimed to compare numerical CPSS to additional stroke scales using a national Emergency Medical Services (EMS) database.
Methods: Using the ESO Data Collaborative, the largest EMS database with linked hospital data, we retrospectively analyzed prehospital patient records from 2022.
Article Synopsis
- Gene-gene interactions are believed to play a significant role in the development of multifactorial diseases like cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT), highlighting potential causes of unexplained heritability.
- A study involving 882 CVT patients and 1,205 control participants found that specific gene variants significantly increased the likelihood of developing CVT, particularly when individuals had certain blood types.
- The research concluded that the interactions between specific genes could raise the risk of CVT by as much as 14 times, underscoring the importance of understanding these genetic factors in disease etiology.
Background: Previous research demonstrated that the numerical Cincinnati Prehospital Stroke Scale (CPSS) identifies large vessel occlusion (LVO) at similar rates compared to a limited number of stroke severity screening tools. We aimed to compare numerical CPSS to additional stroke scales using a national EMS database.
Methods: Using the ESO Data Collaborative, the largest EMS database with hospital linked data, we retrospectively analyzed prehospital patient records for the year 2022.
Article Synopsis
- - The study investigates how age, sex, and imaging features relate to coma in patients with cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT), using data from a large international study.
- - Among 596 adult CVT patients, 8.9% experienced coma, with a higher prevalence in men (13.1%) compared to women (7.5%), despite CVT being more common in women.
- - Findings suggest that male sex and older age are significant factors linked to coma in CVT cases, highlighting a complex interplay between gender and clinical outcomes.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates how vascular risk factors like blood pressure, diabetes, and body mass index relate to the risk and recurrence of cervical artery dissections (CeADs), a major cause of stroke in young people.
- Using genetic analysis, it found that higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure significantly increases the risk of CeAD, while higher body mass index showed unclear effects.
- The research suggests that β-blockers could lower the risk of CeAD, which could help shape prevention strategies and clinical trials related to this condition.
Lacunar infarcts and vascular dementia are important phenotypic characteristics of cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy, the most common inherited cerebral small vessel disease. Individuals with the disease show variability in the nature and onset of symptoms and rates of progression, which are only partially explained by differences in pathogenic mutations in the gene. Recognizing the disease early in its course and securing a molecular diagnosis are important clinical goals, despite the lack of proven disease-modifying treatments.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Objectives: In 2017, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued an alert that, after decades of consistent decline, the stroke death rate levelled off in 2013, particularly in younger individuals and without clear origin. The objective of this analysis was to understand whether social determinants of health have influenced trends in stroke mortality.
Methods: We performed a longitudinal analysis of county-level ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke death rate per 100,000 adults from 1999 to 2018 using a Bayesian spatiotemporally smoothed CDC dataset stratified by age (35-64 years [younger] and 65 years or older [older]) and then by county-level social determinants of health.
Introduction: Women with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Whether HDP is also associated with later-life dementia has not been fully explored.
Methods: Using the Utah Population Database, we performed an 80-year retrospective cohort study of 59,668 parous women.
Objectives: Emergency Medicine (EM) provider experiences consulting telestroke (TS) are poorly studied. In this qualitative study, we aimed to determine how TS changes patient management and to measure TS effects on EM provider confidence with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) treatment.
Materials And Methods: We designed a survey for EM providers querying perceptions of TS value, confidence with treating AIS, and counterfactuals regarding what EM providers would have done without TS.
Objective: To examine preliminary effects of ReStoreD (Resilience after Stroke in Dyads) on resilience in couples coping with stroke-related challenges.
Design: Supplemental analysis of prospective pilot trial with pre-/post-assessments and 3-month follow-up.
Setting: Community.
Article Synopsis
- Cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) is a rare type of stroke primarily affecting young adults, and this study investigates how age and gender, along with specific risk factors, influence its onset.
- Data were collected from a large, international study (BEAST) involving 1,309 CVT patients, revealing that the average age at onset for women is significantly younger (37 years) than for men (46 years).
- Findings indicate that women with risk factors like pregnancy or oral contraceptive use experience CVT much earlier, sometimes up to 12 years before men, highlighting the critical role of gender in CVT onset.
Background: Migraine is associated with neuroimaging differences in cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy (CADASIL). However, it is unknown if migraine-related disability (MRD) or if calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), a vasoactive peptide important in migraine pathology, have radiographic implications. The aims of this study were to identify whether MRD or interictal serum CGRP levels impacted neuroimaging findings for those with CADASIL.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Prior meta-analyses report a 2- to 4-fold increased risk of later cardiovascular disease among women with a history of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP). Given HDP's vascular underpinnings, it is hypothesized to also be a risk factor for later dementia. We aim to summarize the evidence for the impact of HDP on dementia and consider unique associations between HDP and dementia subtypes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Higher blood pressure variability (BPV) is associated with the development of major vascular diseases, independent of mean blood pressure. However, despite data indicating that serum inflammatory markers are linked to hypertension, the association between serum inflammatory markers and BPV has not been studied in humans.
Methods: This is a post hoc analysis of the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) study.
Introduction: Patients with acute ischaemic strokes (AIS), on average, fare better with timely neurologist consultation, and a growing proportion of them receive one. However, little is known about trends in the characteristics of neurologists who treat AIS.
Methods: We identified AIS and transient ischaemic attack (TIA) episodes with neurologist consults in fee-for-service Medicare from January 2008 to September 2021.
Purpose: Many individuals with stroke require informal caregiver support. These caregivers are often unprepared and overwhelmed. This study assesses the feasibility and acceptability of GETCare, a remote Goal-based Education and skills Training program for Caregivers caring for an individual poststroke.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Abbreviated "rapid MRI" protocols have become more common for the evaluation of acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Prior research has not evaluated the effect of rapid MRIs on cost or hospital length of stay in AIS patients.
Methods: We retrospectively identified AIS patients who presented within 6 h of acute neurologic symptom onset to an emergency department (ED) and activated a "brain attack" code.
Ischemic stroke prompts a strong inflammatory response, which is associated with exacerbated outcomes. In this study, we investigated mechanistic regulators of neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) formation in stroke and whether they contribute to stroke outcomes. NET-forming neutrophils were found throughout brain tissue of ischemic stroke patients, and elevated plasma NET biomarkers correlated with worse stroke outcomes.
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