EDITORIAL : UPHILL BATTLE A UCLA NEUROSURGEON HAS TURNED BACK THE HANDS OF TIME FOR STROKE VICTIMS.ALTHOUGH we often hear about the miracles of modern science, we rarely witness such a truly revolutionary breakthrough as the one revealed last week to prevent paralysis for stroke victims. The procedure reverses the flow of blood through the brain, a process that sounds as impossible as making a clock run backward. Although the skeptics said it couldn't be done, UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX neurosurgeon neurosurgeon a physician who specializes in neurosurgery. neurosurgeon A surgeon specialized in managing diseases of the brain, spine and peripheral nerves Meat & potatoes diseases Brain tumors, spinal cord disease Salary $245K + 15% bonus. Dr. John Frazee persevered and spent the last decade developing, testing and perfecting the method. His findings caused a sensation when presented at an international stroke conference in Anaheim sponsored by the American Heart Association American Heart Association (AHA), n.pr a national voluntary health agency that has the goal of increasing public and medical awareness of cardiovascular diseases and stroke, and thereby reducing the number of associated deaths and disabilities. . No one at the conference could be more astounded a·stound tr.v. a·stound·ed, a·stound·ing, a·stounds To astonish and bewilder. See Synonyms at surprise. [From Middle English astoned, past participle of astonen, and pleased than Sylmar stroke victim Paul Boyer. Boyer opted for the experimental surgery that allowed him to reclaim his life and play golf just nine days after a stroke left him paralyzed par·a·lyze tr.v. par·a·lyzed, par·a·lyz·ing, par·a·lyz·es 1. To affect with paralysis; cause to be paralytic. 2. To make unable to move or act: paralyzed by fear. on his left side. Fifteen minutes after starting the procedure - which uses the brain's plumbing to pump oxygenated blood backward through the brain and to flush out the killer clot - Boyer, 61, could move his leg again. It is a promising discovery for future victims of strokes, which claim 150,000 lives a year and leave some 400,000 adults disabled and often paralyzed. Certainly, more testing is needed before it is widely accepted. But Dr. Frazee and his team at the UCLA Medical Center UCLA Medical Center is a hospital located on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles in Los Angeles, California. It is rated as one of the top three hospitals in the United States and is the top hospital on the West Coast according to US News & World Report. are to be commended for fighting against the ``you-can't-do-that'' notion. We applaud their achievement and persistence. |
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