ABSTRACT
Stroke can be defined as a rapid onset neurological deficit of presumed vascular origin lasting for more than 24 hours and which may result in death.1 Each year in the UK, over 100 000 people are affected by this disease2 and on a worldwide scale, it is estimated that there are 4.5 million deaths from stroke per year.3 Furthermore, with the increasing size of the elderly population anticipated over the next few years, this number is likely to rise.3,4 The prevalence of stroke is dependent upon case fatality and incidence. In the USA, stroke affects 550 000 people per year; of these 150 000 die, approximately 350 000 are disabled and there are an estimated 3 million survivors from stroke.5 A study of the pathophysiology of stroke suggests that it is likely that both the survival and the quality of life of stroke survivors might be improved by early reperfusion of the area of brain immediately adjacent to the core of cerebral infarction.
