First Indiana Clinic To Serve Children And Young Adult Stroke Patients Opens At IUSM

INDIANAPOLIS-- The effects of stroke on the young are unique from those experienced by older individuals so neurologists at Indiana University School of Medicine have opened a stroke clinic for children and young adults, the first in Indiana and one of only a handful nationwide.

Jose Biller, M.D., chairman of the Indiana University Department of Neurology, and Bhuwan Garg, M.D., professor of neurology and director of pediatric neurology at Riley Hospital for Children, are co-directors of the stroke clinic, which opened April 3.

Little research has been done among children and young adults who have suffered strokes so their current treatments are based on research done in adults. Drs. Biller and Garg and their colleagues are embarking on new research on stroke in children and young adults to determine if the current diagnostic evaluations and treatments are appropriate.

Stroke is more common among the young than heart attacks but is still considered rare with only about 5 to 10 young people per 100,000 suffering strokes each year. Approximately 15 to 20 new stroke patients are seen each year by pediatricians at Riley.

Forty-five percent of strokes in young people are due to hemorrhages in the brain compared to 15 percent to 20 percent in older adults. The remaining 55 percent are ischemic strokes meaning blood flow to an area of the brain was disrupted.

The primary causes of stroke in the young are cardiac disorders, blood vessel disorders not related to atherosclerosis, and a variety of blood and metabolic disorders. Smoking, drugs and alcohol abuse also contribute to the incidence of stroke in the young. In older adults, stroke is caused by atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) in the majority of cases.

The IU Stroke Clinic for Children and Young Adults will see patients between the ages of 7 and 45. For an appointment, call 317-274-2372.

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