Brain TV (Tissue Velocimetry) for Emergency Assessment of Suspected Stroke

Brain TV (Tissue Velocimetry) for Emergency Assessment of Suspected Stroke

This study uses a Doppler ultrasound technique being developed at the University of Leicester called "Brain Tissue Velocimetry" (Brain TV), to investigate brain tissue motion over the cardiac cycle.

Brain motion is highly sensitive to heart and brain biomechanics, but the impact of brain injury on brain tissue motion has yet to be explored. Preliminary brain tissue motion measurements from a small number of patients suggest that brain biomechanics may be disturbed in the presence of brain injury. This study combines transcranial tissue Doppler (TCTD) ultrasound with brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to establish whether analysis of brain tissue motion provides clinically useful information for emergency diagnosis and monitoring of suspected stroke.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Participant (or consultee) is willing and able to give informed consent (or assent) for participation in the study.
• Adult, aged 18 years or over.
• Suspected stroke (any severity and any stroke type).

Exclusion Criteria:

• Unable (in the investigators' opinion), or unwilling, to comply with the study requirements.
• Patients with pre-existing chronic brain conditions that may make affect informed consent, such as severe learning difficulties, dementia, or Alzheimer's disease, will be excluded.