Managing variety in MRI scans can lead to better stroke diagnoses

The first few hours following a stroke are crucial. To be able to treat a patient effectively, doctors must rapidly localize the damaged blood vessel and determine what kind of stroke occurred. In most cases, either a ruptured blood vessel releases blood into the brain, or a blood clot obstructs a blood vessel in the brain. Patients who experience the second type of stroke are prescribed medication to dissolve the blood clot. If this medication is given to patients of the first type, however, it will fluidify the blood and only make the hemorrhaging worse.