Stroke Treatment

At UVA, our rapid evaluation capabilities and trained specialists offer high-tech stroke treatment. UVA is designated a Comprehensive Stroke Center by The Joint Commission, meaning we are ready 24/7 to treat even the most complex stroke cases. Our team can help you avoid disability or death and recover quickly from a stroke.

Our Stroke Treatment Team

On call 24 hours a day, UVA’s Acute Stroke Team includes specialty-trained stroke neurologists and a range of other specialists who will evaluate and treat you within minutes. A rapid evaluation is essential to providing the right treatment at the right time.

Our stroke team includes:

  • Neurologists who specialize in treating stroke
  • Emergency room providers
  • Cerebrovascular and endovascular neurosurgeons
  • Interventional neuroradiologists
  • Stroke-trained nursing staff for a dedicated 10-bed stroke unit and 12-bed neuro-intensive care unit

Stopping Stroke With Medication

Clotting causes most strokes. Here at UVA, we can use a clot-busting drug, known as tissue plasminogen activator (tPA). UVA was instrumental in this drug’s development, and it’s still the only FDA-approved drug therapy for acute stroke. The drug is now used everywhere, but it must be given within the first three hours or so of the onset of symptoms to be effective.

We also offer other clot-busting medications, depending on the timing of your treatment.

Surgeries & Procedures for Stroke

For ischemic stroke, procedures include:

  • Embolectomy
  • Angioplasty
  • Carotid and cerebral stents
  • Intra-arterial thrombolysis
  • Extracranial/intracranial bypass

Two primary treatments exist for cerebral aneurysms:

  • Coiling, a less-invasive technique that uses a catheter to insert tiny platinum coils or stents to prevent the aneurysm from rupturing
  • Clipping, which involves removing part of the skull and placing a metal clip across the aneurysm to prevent blood flow into the aneurysm sac

See all the options for brain aneurysm treatments.

For managing arteriovenous malformation (AVM), we offer expertise in:

  • Microsurgical resection, where our neurosurgeons remove part of the skull and use microsurgery to remove an AVM completely
  • Gamma Knife, which can be used for small AVMs that are located in or near critical brain areas or are very deep inside the brain.
  • Endovascular therapy embolization, where a glue-like material is injected directly into the arteries via a catheter 

Learn about our stroke recovery services