The current gold standard to treat strokes is a blood thinner called tissue plasminogen activator, which cannot be used for some hemorrhagic strokes. Now, a new treatment for strokes caused by bleeding in the brain that uses a magnetically controlled microrobot-enabled self-clearing catheter has been shown to be 86% effective in animal models.

Researchers at Purdue University (West Lafayette, IN, USA) created the magnetically controlled microdevice that removes blood accumulating in the brain during a stroke. The innovation was tested on porcine models of hemorrhage and the microrobots successfully removed the blood in six of the seven animals in the treatment animal model. The innovation can be remotely activated using externally applied magnetic fields. The researchers have filed for a patent on the intellectual property and the next step to further develop the device is to receive approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for a first-in-human study.

"This innovation is a real advance in the care of strokes, which are notoriously difficult to treat," said Hyowon "Hugh" Lee, a Purdue University associate professor from the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, who created the magnetically controlled microdevice. "There is no need for an implanted power source or complicated integrated circuit. As you change the direction of the magnetic field, the microdevice moves like a compass needle with a magnet nearby. They can be part of an implantable shunt system or a part of extraventricular drainage systems."

"Patients with brain hemorrhages have a mortality rate of up to 50%," said Dr. Albert Lee from Goodman Campbell Brain and Spine. "Currently there is no great therapeutic solution for intraventricular hemorrhage. The only other option is blood clot-dissolving drugs that have undesirable risks." 

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