Research

As one of the nation’s elite teaching hospitals, our neurology clinicians are involved in studies aimed at finding better, more effective ways to care for neurology patients. Research conducted at Grady is helping to redefine the way doctors around the world treat stroke and neurological conditions. This commitment to research means that Grady offers the best standard stroke and neurological care – and the best emerging care. The benefit to patients is clear: They have access to treatment options unavailable at most other institutions.

FASTEST/ Navalkele, PI

FASTEST is a multicenter research study involving patients who have had bleeding in the brain, also called intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). ICH occurs when a weakened blood vessel in the brain breaks and bleeding accumulates in the brain. Most of this bleeding occurs within a few hours of the onset of symptoms. The brain injury from ICH is usually very severe, over 40% of people with ICH die within a month, and only 20% can independently care for themselves after 6 months. There is currently no treatment for ICH that is scientifically proven to improve outcomes. The FASTEST research study is being done to determine if recombinant Factor VIIa (rFVIIa), a protein that our body makes to stop bleeding at the site of injury to a blood vessel, can slow bleeding in the brain and improve outcomes. rFVIIa is approved for the treatment of bleeding in patients who have inherited a lack of clotting factors but is not approved for the treatment of ICH. For more information, visit https://nihstrokenet.org/fastest/home

EXCELLENT (Embotrap device registry) / Haussen, PI

Embotrap eXtraction & Clot EvaLuation & Lesion Evaluation for NeuroThrombectomy: The objective of this global, multi-site study is to assess the efficacy of the EmboTrap® Revascularization Device in a real-world setting and to explore correlations between patient comorbidities, clot characteristics, revascularization rates, and clinical outcomes.

DAWN

DWI or CTP Assessment With Clinical Mismatch in the Triage of Wake-Up and Late Presenting Strokes Undergoing Neurointervention With Trevo.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the hypothesis that Trevo thrombectomy plus medical management leads to superior clinical outcomes at 90 days, as compared to medical management alone in appropriately selected subjects experiencing an acute ischemic stroke when treatment is initiated within 6-24 hours after last seen well.

The DAWN trial showed that, among patients with acute ischemic stroke presenting 6-24 hours after symptom onset due to proximal large arterial occlusion, and with evidence of a mismatch between infarct volume on imaging and severity of clinical deficits, endovascular thrombectomy along with standard of care was superior to routine standard of care for outcomes of disability and functional independence at 90 days.

Grady was the second-highest enrolling site internationally and was recognized as having the least number of protocol deviations study-wide.

SanBio

A Double-Blind, Controlled Phase 2b Study of the Safety and Efficacy of Modified Stem Cells (SB623) in Patients with Chronic Motor Deficit from Ischemic Stroke.

SanBio’s stem cell treatment utilizing modified stem cells called SB623 was deemed generally safe and well-tolerated and may have the ability to improve motor function in patients six months to five years following an ischemic stroke. The trial was the first intracerebral stem cell transplant study for stroke in North America.

Swift Prime

Solitaire™ FR with the intention of thrombectomy as a primary endovascular treatment for acute ischemic stroke.

The study was stopped early because of efficacy. The SWIFT-PRIME trial showed that in patients receiving intravenous tPA for acute ischemic stroke due to occlusions in the proximal anterior intracranial circulation, thrombectomy with a stent retriever within 6 hours after onset improved functional outcomes at 90 days.

If you are interested in performing research at Grady, find out how to begin by visiting our Office of Research Administration.