Stroke Prevention Is Focus of Latest Continuum

December 6, 2011

The December issue of Continuum: Lifelong Learning in Neurology® focuses on secondary stroke prevention and offers the opportunity to earn up to 12 hours of AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™.

“This is the first issue of Continuum® wholly dedicated to discussing the identification and modification of risk factors for secondary stroke,” said Guest Editor Bruce I. Ovbiagele, MD, MSc, FAAN. “Therapeutic options for secondary stroke prevention are rapidly evolving, so neurologists will benefit from an up-to-date educational resource that covers the full range of topics pertinent to reducing future vascular events in their stroke patients.”

The new issue includes articles on epidemiology and risk factors; blood pressure reduction in secondary stroke prevention; dyslipidemia management; antithrombotic therapy for secondary stroke prevention; large artery revascularization; insulin resistance, obesity, metabolic syndrome, and lifestyle modification; prevention of intracerebral hemorrhage recurrence; and systematic stroke prevention. The issue also includes an ethics article on the emergency management of acute ischemic stroke in incapacitated patients who have no surrogate decision makers. Practice articles on cryptogenic stroke and patent foramen ovale and coding issues related to stroke prevention are also included.

Upon completion of this issue, readers will be able to:

• Discuss the high short-term risk of secondary stroke
• Recognize the utility of a validated score to predict patients with TIA at highest risk for early stroke occurrence
• Identify conventional and novel risk factors for ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke
• Describe the preeminent role of elevated blood pressure in stroke risk and the established efficacy of antihypertensive therapies to reduce the risk of recurrent stroke
• Explain the benefits of high-dose statin therapy in lowering vascular risk after stroke
• Discuss the various traditional and emerging antithrombotic therapies available and  their advantages and disadvantages
• Discuss the indications for surgical and endovascular revascularization techniques in reducing secondary stroke risk in patients with symptomatic or asymptomatic large artery atherothrombotic disease
• Recognize the growing national epidemics of obesity and insulin resistance and their links to stroke risk
• Justify the importance of incorporating therapeutic lifestyle changes into secondary stroke preventive care
• Discuss evidence-based strategies for reducing the risk of recurrent intracerebral hemorrhage
• Describe evidence-practice gaps with regard to inpatient and community secondary stroke preventive care and list programs and initiatives that have shown success in bridging these gaps
• Discuss issues related to alternative treatment options for patients for whom relevant data to guide decision making are lacking
• Recognize the possibility of referring patients with patent foramen ovale for participation in a clinical trial

We welcome your feedback about any of the articles included in Continuum and will publish them online and in print. Send correspondence and letters to Editor-in-Chief Aaron Miller, MD, FAAN, at aweiss@aan.com.

For more information, visit www.aan.com/continuum.

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