Kazakhstan’s Hospital Introduces New Method of CT Perfusion
Hospital #7 in Almaty introduces a new method of computed tomography perfusion for faster detection of a brain attack. The method allows doctors to see cerebral blood flow on the level of the capillary system, feeding vessels for brain tissues. The new type of scanning is designed for patients with acute cerebrovascular events, according to community trust NeuroDamu.
CT perfusion is a highly efficient way to assess the speed and volume of cerebral blood flow, its timing characteristics being crucial for adequate therapy and control of treatment process, says Ermek Dusembekov, head of Neurosurgery Center in Almaty and chief officer in the neuro-oncology department of Hospital #7.
«CT perfusion is going to be useful for neurosurgeons when they plan tactics of surgery, try to identify contra-indications or as a predictor of surgical complications,» he said.
According to the specialist, once the CT perfusion is part of the clinical practice, doctors will be able to diagnose ischemic stroke right after the very first symptoms as well as assess how much brain and vitalized tissues were invaded. Based on this information, doctors can decide what type of systemic treatment can be applied beyond the therapeutic window.
CT perfusion is an expensive scanning procedure but in urgent cases of a brain attack patients get this scanning free of charge, said Galina Battalova, head of the roentgen diagnostic department in Hospital #7. The hospital has modern CT scanners that can be used for neuroradiological scanning.
«In the future, all the proper protocols of such scanning will be developed and introduced into the clinical practice of local hospitals. These protocols are going to meet new international standards. CT perfusion has a bunch of undeniable advantages over other methods of cerebral blood flow measuring methods because it’s widely available, and can diagnose brain attack quickly and accurately,» she stated.
These days, CT perfusion is part of the clinical practice in all developed countries as an efficient method of brain blood flow measuring. On December 3-4, 2021, the community trust Neuro Damu and GE Healthcare organized an event at the premises of Hospital #7. Specialists from Russia who were invited to the event gave a master class for roentgen diagnosis department assistants from ten regions of Kazakhstan. As the acute cerebrovascular event is one of the main causes of death in the world, fast and accurate diagnosis of the disease is a crucial task.
CT perfusion uses special X-ray equipment and a contrast medium to show which areas of the brain are adequately supplied with blood (perfused) and provides detailed information about blood flow to the brain. After scanning, all the data received is mathematically analyzed: doctors consequently measure tissue density in every pixel of the analyzed material.
Once all data is analyzed, specialists create so-called CT perfusion summary maps for visualization of anatomic and physiological information about the brain, its pathology and features. By using CT perfusion, doctors can diagnose ischemic stroke in the early stages of a disease.
The community trust NeuroDamu was established in October 2021. Its main goal is to fight ischemic stroke and other neurological diseases. The founder of the trust is Doszhan Zhussupov, director-general of a project Cerebra. This summer the project gained $1 million in investments from Timur Turlov, CEO of Freedom Holding Corp.
