FIND Stroke Recovery - A Longitudinal Study

BACKGROUND Stroke survivors frequently suffer disabilities including motor and cognitive problems, impairments in speech and vision, depression, and several other disabilities that worsen their quality of life. Some will recover fully after stroke and others will have permanent impairements. Few studies show trajectories of recovery in different domains after stroke, hence recovery time-lines are not fully known. Also, the whole range of mechanisms leading to recovery are not precisely known (1). To monitor those mechanisms one can utilize biomarkers. In parallel to the studies of recovery, studies on time series of biomarkers after stroke are limited (2). Hence, a crucial first step to increase knowledge on biomarkers of stroke recovery is to gain a better understanding of the time course of both stroke recovery and biomarker patterns. Biomarkers can later be used for outcome predictions after stroke. WORK PLAN AIM Determine temporal profiles describing the speed, order, and degree of recovery in neurological and cognitive functions in various domains with simultaneous profiling of changes in blood biomarker concentrations, in the acute, subacute phases and long-term of stroke. Determine individual and interindividual variations in recovery in the different domains. Informed consent Written informed consent will be obtained from all willing participants or their next-of-kin.