|Can stroking whiskers prevent stroke? Serendipitous finding
provokes new line of study. It may sound more like science
fiction than a carefully controlled scientific protocol, but
research indicates that stimulating just one facial whisker of a
lab rodent for less than 5 minutes, promptly after blockage of a
critical brain artery, can prevent impending stroke. If these
findings, reported by scientists supported by the National
Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, can be
replicated in humans using similar means, it could offer an
easy-to-deliver treatment for thwarting cerebrovascular disease,
the third leading cause of death in the U.S. and the number one
cause of long-term disability. Researchers and other medical
experts have long sought ways to prevent or limit brain damage
due to stroke, since its effects can be so life-shattering.
Stroke occurs when blood flow to the brain is suddenly
interrupted or when a cerebral blood vessel bursts, causing
critical brain cells to die. More than 780,000 ce