An emergency care research study of bleeding in the brain is to be performed in this area.

The Medical University of South Carolina is joining researchers at more than 100 other hospitals across the United States and other countries to conduct a research study of bleeding in the brain called FASTEST. This research study may affect you or someone you know. FASTEST is a research study involving patients who have had bleeding in the brain, also called intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH).

ICH occurs when a weakened blood vessel in the brain breaks and bleeding accumulates in the brain. Most of this bleeding occurs within a few hours of onset of symptoms. The brain injury from ICH is usually very severe, over 40% of people with ICH die within a month, and only 20% can independently care for themselves after 6 months.

There is currently no treatment for ICH that is scientifically proven to improve outcome. The FASTEST research study is being done to determine if recombinant Factor VIIa (rFVIIa), a protein that our body makes to stop bleeding at the site of injury to a blood vessel, can slow bleeding in the brain and improve outcome. rFVIIa is approved for treatment of bleeding in patients who have inherited lack of clotting factors but is not approved for treatment of ICH.

Participants in the FASTEST research study are placed at random, that is by chance, into one of 2 groups. They have an equal chance of getting rFVIIa or placebo (no active ingredient). One group receives rFVIIa intravenously over 2 minutes within two hours of onset of symptoms and the other group receives placebo. We do not know if rFVIIa is better than placebo for patients with bleeding in the brain. The results of the FASTEST research study will help doctors discover if rFVIIa improves outcome in patients with bleeding in the brain. Medical care otherwise will be identical for the two treatment groups, including close management of blood pressure and care within an intensive care unit. Some patients will be enrolled without consent if a family member or representative is not rapidly available.

Before the research study starts, we will consult with the community and need your input as this research may affect you or someone you know, and we need to find out ahead of time what the community thinks about it. Below are links to the the FASTEST site for more information about this research study and how to give your feedback. There are no known risks involved in participating in this survey and your participation is completely voluntary. THANK YOU for your help and time in completing this survey:

Click here for more information or to decline participation in this research study: https://nihstrokenet.org/fastest/home

Click here to access the survey to provide feedback and ask questions:
https://redcap.research.cchmc.org/surveys/?s=YALHC7W838

OR To contact our research study staff at (843-792-3020).
Primary Investigator: Dr. Parneet Grewal
Study Coordinators: Caitlan LeMatty

Apathy is a common set of symptoms seen in many people following a stroke. Apathy occurs when a person has lost motivation, becomes withdrawn, and stops doing things that used to be important to them. Apathy has a large negative impact on a person's quality of life, and can also have a large impact the people who take care of individuals with apathy. There are currently no FDA-approved treatments to help with apathy, and other services like therapy may be difficult to access for people who have had a stroke. To address this problem, we are conducting a study to find out if a form of treatment called repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) can be safe and helpful for people struggling with apathy after a stroke. Our study will apply a new form of rTMS which can be delivered quickly to a part of the brain called the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). Our study will help establish whether this treatment is safe, comfortable, and effective for people with apathy after a stroke, and will help researchers develop new forms of treatment.