Surgery, medications, hospital care and rehabilitation are all considered accepted methods of treating a patient who has suffered a stroke. Scientists are also continuously exploring new methods of treating strokes and preventing recurrent strokes. Research is ongoing in several areas, including:

• Antibiotics. Studies have found that atherosclerotic plaque can harbor bacteria, which, in turn, may increase the tendency for arterial rupture. Researchers are investigating whether antibiotics can exert any effects against such bacteria, thereby increasing the plaque’s stability and reducing the risk of it breaking off and causing a stroke.
  
  
• Mechanical thrombolysis. These are devices that use catheter-delivered tools to break up or remove blood clots. Currently, clot-busting drugs are the only method available to break up a blood clot in the brain. However, they can take up to an hour to be effective. Devices being tested use lasers, sound waves, suction, spinning blades or snares to remove clots.
  
  
• Neuroprotective agents. Neuroprotective agents represent another avenue of stroke treatment. These agents attempt to rescue brain cells from injury caused by an ischemic stroke. Some agents attempt to increase the flow of blood to the region of brain experiencing stroke. Other agents may prevent damage caused by blood returning to the affected area of the brain. Still other agents seek to limit the damage caused by dying brain cells, which release a chemical as they die that kills surrounding brain cells.
  
  
• Stem cell transplants. Stem cells are basic cells that have the ability to develop into many different types of cells. They start out very similar to each other, but depending on where they develop, the cells become highly specialized to their individual functions. Researchers are investigating a variety of methods in which stem cell transplants could be used as a treatment for stroke damage and other conditions involving damaged brain cells.
  
  
• Hypothermia. Researchers are studying whether lowering a patient’s body temperature can decrease the amount of damage that occurs during a severe stroke by lowering the brain’s demand for oxygen.
  
  
• Cholesterol-lowering drugs. Recent studies indicate that statins may decrease a patient’s stroke risk.

More investigation is needed to determine the safety and effectiveness of these potential treatments, and to determine the best method of administering these treatments to patients.