Reviews & Analysis

A recent study has found that one in six people who are independent at 3 months after stroke deteriorate and need assistance by 12 months. Older women with comorbidities, and patients not given appropriate secondary stroke prevention were most at risk. Anticipation and prevention of deterioration could help reduce the later burden of stroke.

Stroke has a heavy socioeconomic burden. A subset of patients with transient or nondisabling cerebral ischaemic events will experience recurrent stroke, leading to permanent deficits. Two new studies tackle the challenge of identifying the patients most at risk for recurrent stroke via examination of radiological and serum biomarkers.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) has been linked with cognitive impairment and dementia. A new cross-sectional study reports that T2DM is also associated with dementia in Parkinson disease, and another study describes the long-term clinical course of diabetes-associated cognitive dysfunction; however, the mechanisms through which T2DM affects the brain are not completely understood.

Approximately 60% of people diagnosed with childhood-onset epilepsy are known to be in 5-year remission and off medication, or in complete remission. A new report confirms and consolidates these findings and gives further evidence of the long-term stability of remission in epilepsy. A future risk of relapse is suggested, which might be an overestimate.