More details on the snake venom research

Last posting linked to a news article about research in using snake venom to treat stroke patients. A more technical and detailed link can be found with the Internet Stroke Center's Stroke Trials Registry.

The page describes the efforts to learn about the results of an intravenous infusion of ancrod - pit viper venom - within six hours of a stroke. The study looks at patient status three months afterward.

The study is still recruiting facilities and patients to take part in the study.

In the future, stroke survivors might thank snakes

Stories about snake venom treating stroke victims have appeared from time to time, so it's high time to link to one for Stroke Awareness Month.

This one is from the Tallahassee Democrat. A particular study, in which the Tallahassee Memorial Hospital's Stroke Center is taking part, focuses on the use of Malayan pit viper venom. According to the article, the venom might work up to six hours after a stroke; a drug derived from the venom "is believed to have anti-coagulation and anti-clotting effects, which may improve blood flow to the brain."

The worldwide study started in 2005, and it bears watching.