The public defence will be held as a video conference over Zoom.
The defence will follow regular procedure as far as possible, hence it will be open to the public and the audience can ask ex auditorio questions when invited to do so.
Click here to participate in the public defence
Due to copyright reasons, an electronic copy of the thesis must be ordered from the faculty. In order for the faculty to have time to process the order, it must be received by the faculty no later than 2 days prior to the public defence. Orders received later than 2 days before the defence will not be processed. Inquiries regarding the thesis after the public defence must be addressed to the candidate.
Digital Trial Lecture – time and place
Adjudication committee
- First opponent: Assistant Professor Daniel Ferreira Padilla, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
- Second opponent: Associate Professor Marit Herder, The Arctic University of Norway (UiT)
- Third member and chair of the evaluation committee: Professor II Cecilie Røe, University of Oslo
Chair of the Defence
Professor Emeritus Knut Engedal, University of Oslo
Principal Supervisor
Professor II Mona K Beyer, University of Oslo
Summary
The Nor-COAST study, which is one of the largest studies of its kind in the world with 815 participants, has put cognitive impairment after stroke on the agenda. The imaging sub study, performed at the University of Oslo and the Oslo University Hospital, is mainly focusing on the use of brain MRI scans in the setting of post-stroke cognitive impairment.
In the PhD thesis Brain MRI findings associated with cognitive impairment before and after stroke, Till Schellhorn and collaborators analyse brain MRI scans of 410 stroke patients to assess the pathogenesis of post-stroke cognitive impairment. To achieve this, the researchers identify baseline cerebrovascular and neurodegenerative imaging markers that act as predictors of post-stroke cognitive impairment.
Stroke is the second leading cause of death worldwide. At the same time constitutes dementia one of the most considerable public health challenges of our time. Individuals affected by stroke need urgent, life-saving treatment followed by rehabilitation. A history of stroke doubles the risk of dementia in patients above 65.
Brain MRI is the key modality to deliver imaging characteristics of the stroke lesion and other underlying pathologies. These imaging insights might help to select vulnerable patients for therapeutic interventions.
The results show that patients who develop cognitive impairment after stroke already have brain changes prior to the stroke. This pre-existing pathology seems to be associated with the development of cognitive impairment after stroke. Which is mainly the case for patients with small vessel disease. Furthermore, the results show that the size and location of the stroke as well as atrophy of the medial temporal lobe are associated with the risk of cognitive impairment.
Brain MR images help to identify patients at risk for developing cognitive impairment after the stroke. The gained knowledge from our research will hopefully lead to better treatment of post-stroke cognitive impairment in the future.
Additional information
Contact the research support staff.