Stroke is the leading cause of motor disability in adults and the fourth-most prevalent cause of death in those older than 65. Missouri is hit particularly hard, ranking fourth among states in per-capita stroke prevalence, and 14th in stroke mortality.

Given these facts, evidence-based improvements in stroke prevention, treatment and rehabilitation are a high priority for the federal health-care system.

At MU Health Care, our interdisciplinary Stroke Center and Rusk Rehabilitation Hospital, an affiliate of Encompass Health and MU Health Care, have both received the Joint Commission’s prestigious Gold Seal of Approval for providing patients with the highest level of care. In addition, a multidisciplinary coalition of clinicians and scientists are committed to advancing evidence-based care of stroke victims.

We recently received funds from University of Missouri Advantage Fund: One Health, One Medicine to develop two vital ingredients common to all successful stroke research programs: 1) an infrastructure for systematically identifying, characterizing and recruiting patients for research participation; 2) a mechanism that facilitates interactions among clinicians and scientists who share a mutual interest in advancing evidence-based care within our institution and in neighboring universities, i.e., University of Kansas Medical Center, Washington University and University of Missouri Kansas City.

While the registry directly affects research with humans by fostering an interactive community of scientists and clinicians, this project will also benefit researchers working with animal models of stroke by presenting new opportunities for interdisciplinary and inter-institutional collaboration.

Stroke Registry Access
Investigators can make a request for research participants via the Stroke Registry Data Request Form.

Joseph Burris, MD
Principal Investigator

Carmen M. Cirstea, MD, PhD
Co-Investigator and Director