TIME for progress in stroke care

Every five minutes, somebody in the UK will experience a stroke. The impact of such a severe medical event can be transformative for an individual, occurring often without warning and with the ability to kill or leave a permanent mark on its victim.

And for those who do survive there is a risk of long-term effects, including paralysis and speech impairment, which will require lengthy periods of rehabilitation, with no guarantee of success.

Intervention at the onset of a stroke is critical, and this is where Professor Iris Grunwald, Chair of Neuroradiology at the University, is making her mark.

“It’s all about time,” says Iris.

“For every six minutes that the arteries to the brain are blocked following a stroke, the chances of what we would call a ‘good’ outcome drop by 1%. That means the permanent loss of millions of brain cells, significantly increasing the chances of disability or even death.”

Ischemic strokes are caused by either a vessel blockage or a blood clot preventing oxygen reaching the brain. The onset of a stroke can be sudden, often with an inability for a person to speak or move one side of their body. One of Iris’ main goals at Dundee is to embrace new technology to improve patient care. Central to this mission is the multidisciplinary Tayside Innovation MedTech Ecosystem (TIME).

The new facility brings together the University, NHS and industry, enabling new technologies to quickly move from prototyping to commercialisation to adoption in the healthcare sector, ultimately creating new wealth for the region and improved health outcomes.

“Collaborations are realised through easy interaction of clinicians, researchers, industry, and entrepreneurs. TIME is a powerhouse of product development, engineering, research, and clinical expertise all under one roof, with a primary focus on innovation and product development.”

Part of the TIME initiative has seen Dundee become only the second university in the world to receive a state-of the-art mobile Photon Counting Detector (PCD). Photon counting technology has the potential to revolutionise radiology by providing higher quality images with less radiation, allowing experts to analyse differences in a patient’s tissue characteristics.

These images provide more accurate insights into stroke and cancer care.

“Dundee is always fantastic for embracing technology and utilising it to improve people’s lives,” added Iris.

“For example, the World Federation for Interventional Stroke Treatment recently accredited the University of Dundee as a training centre of excellence for interventions in stroke, recognising our unique perfused training models.”

Iris’ work in TIME will supplement her already considerable contribution to stroke patient care. Having been instrumental in introducing thrombectomy in Dundee in 2020, through the training of interventional radiologists, Iris and her team also created software that analyses CT scans in acute stroke, supporting doctors across the world. Iris also introduced the first Mobile Stroke Unit Ambulance to England, a project she is attempting to secure funding for to replicate in Scotland.

To find out more about Iris’ work contact advancement@dundee.ac.uk Iris added, “TIME fosters collaborations that impact the lives of individuals in our community: patients, physicians, researchers, and students.

“I came to Dundee because I saw the great collaboration between the University and the local health board, NHS Tayside. There is also a great entrepreneurial spirit, and the University is renowned for its ability to work with and support spinout commercial partners.

“That is a special combination, and with the right support I am confident that we can create the next generation of medical technology to treat vascular disease in Scotland and beyond.”