2024-07-30 10:51:46
After a stroke, the risk of suffering a second one increases. However, researchers have now investigated how this risk can be reduced.
A stroke is often followed by a second one. That is why the search for treatments that prevent strokes from recurring is ongoing worldwide. Researchers from the Medical Faculty of the University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE) are currently reporting on a cost-effective and effective option. In collaboration with an international team, they have investigated an already known drug and found that it minimizes the risk of further strokes.
According to the study, which was recently published in the renowned journal “The Lancet”, the drug colchicine, which is used to treat gout, could also help prevent strokes. In a large-scale long-term study, more than 3,000 patients were treated with a low dose of 500 micrograms of colchicine – in addition to normal treatment after a stroke.
The results were encouraging. Bernadette Schröder from the Institute for Medical Informatics, Biometry and Epidemiology (IMIBE) at the UDE reported: “We observed that patients who took colchicine had fewer vascular diseases, i.e. circulatory disorders that can cause strokes and heart attacks, for example.”
Colchicine could even reduce inflammation that can occur after a stroke. “In addition, we conducted a meta-analysis of the studies available to date. Our results support the assumption that colchicine has an anti-inflammatory effect after a stroke,” says Prof. Christian Weimar, neurologist at IMIBE.
The results of this study are a first glimmer of hope in stroke prevention. However, it remains to be seen whether the findings can be confirmed in further studies.