Statins in Acute Ischemic Stroke(Role of Statins in Reperfusion in Acute Stroke )

Stroke is a major cause of mortality and disability in modern societies. Statins are effective medications in decreasing cardiovascular events through lipid lowering and pleiotropic effects. Ischemic stroke is burdened with a high morbidity and mortality in our society. However, there are few effective and largely available therapies for this devastating disease. In additon to advancing acute reperfusion therapies, there is a need to develop treatments aimed to promote repair and regeneration of brain tissue damaged by ischemia (neurorecovery)(1,2,3). Therapeutic angiogenesis and vasculogenesis represent novel approaches of regenerative medicine that may help in the cure of patients with acute ischemic stroke. Translation of our knowledge about these processes from the bench to bedside is still underway. Although angiogenesis (the sprouting of new blood vessels from pre-existing vascular structures) is likely to contribute to neurorepair, the finality of the angiogenic response in acute ischemic stroke has not been fully elucidated. The first therapeutic approach to angiogenesis after ischemic stroke would be the modulation of the endogenous angiogenic response. In this setting, early instauration of physical activity, statins, and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ agonists may enhance angiogenesis and neuroregeneration Statins have been shown to improve the functional outcome of patients after an ischemic stroke. We hypothesized that daily statin intake improves functional outcome after an acute ischemic stroke (4,5,6,7,8) Duplex sonography is the best noninvasive modality for investigation of possible carotid artery stenosis to evaluate the intema media thickness of carotid artery in patients of acute ischemic stroke before and after receiving high dose of statins to evaluate its effectiveness in management and appropriate dose of statins (9.10.11.12,13,14)