A research team from the Faculty of Medicine and Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University has jointly developed AICute, an innovative program to assess the chances of stroke caused by heart disease (Ischemic Stroke), aimed at helping hospitals that lack cardiologists to enhance the effectiveness of stroke treatment, reduce congestion in hospitals and medical schools.
Each year, many Thais suffer from stroke, die, or become disabled and helpless. Although this disease is a sudden occurrence, it is not impossible to assess the risk in advance to prevent it. research cluster
The research team from the Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University have worked together to invent a tool to help assess the chance of developing a stroke caused by various causes, starting with a tool to assess stroke risk caused by heart disease called “AICute”. It is hoped that the innovation will support the care given to patients in community hospitals and small hospitals in remote areas where there is often a lack of tools and cardiologists.
Higher occurrences of stroke
Thailand has approximately 250,000 patients suffering from stroke every year. In other words, every 2 minutes, one person is likely to suffer from the disease! Of these, 30 percent may die, 30 percent are severely disabled, unable to move their limbs and their mouths appear crooked, and 40 percent of patients have a chance to completely recover or have only a few remaining symptoms.
Although most patients who suffered from a stroke are in their 50s-60s, today, the age range is increasingly younger as a result of lack of physical activity and rest, smoking, substance abuse, an imbalanced diet, and chronic diseases such as hypertension, hyperlipidemia, diabetes, snoring/sleep apnea, and heart disease.
Stroke caused by heart disease is preventable if detected early
Although stroke is life-threatening if the cause of the disease is known and treated quickly, the likelihood of recovery from the disease is high and the recurrence of the disease can be reduced.
“Determining the cause of the disease is important to provide accurate and effective treatment. If the cause is not determined, there is a chance that the disease will reoccur. And when it is repeated for the second time, the third time, the chance of being disabled is increased, causing the dependency and cost increase to be borne by the caregiver,” said Wasan Akarathanawat, M.D., the Chulalongkorn Stroke Center of Excellence.
Stroke can be caused by many reasons (read more in the information box). Each case has a different treatment approach. Currently, 18% of stroke is caused by heart disease.
“Patients in this group often suffer from atrial fibrillation and valve dysfunction or cardiac hypertrophy, which leads to a risk of thrombosis inside the heart, and the clot could drift and cause blockage in the brain, resulting in a stroke.”
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