Stroke biomarker discovery: The search for cerebral “troponin”

This study proposes to develop a peripheral blood test that could diagnose acute ischemic stroke. Through a parallel ongoing multidisciplinary study of cardiac surgery patients at UWMC, the multidisciplinary investigative team will identify promising candidate biomarkers that could be used for stroke diagnosis and prognosis. The current study will detect and validate these biomarkers on a real-world population of patients presenting to Harborview Medical Center with acute ischemic stroke. This study is innovative in its application of the results of a unique patient population (elective cardiac surgery patients) in the prospective identification and subsequent validation of peripherally circulating stroke biomarkers in actual stroke patients. The results of this study could have major impacts on public health through the development of a peripheral blood test that can accurately diagnose ischemic stroke, even in a pre-hospital or emergency department setting, improving patient outcomes through better patient triage and faster stroke treatment.