Hidden small strokes after a brain bleed and risk of thinking and memory problems
Official title: Silent Brain Infarcts in Spontaneous Intracerebral Hemorrhage as a Prognostic Biomarker for Vascular contributions to Cognitive Impairment and Dementia (VCID)
Funded at Rush University Medical Center · NIH-11194507 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at whether hidden small strokes seen on MRI after a spontaneous brain bleed predict thinking and memory problems in survivors.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Rush University Medical Center NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Chicago, United States) |
| Project start | September 17, 2024 |
| Project end | August 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $471,109 |
| NIH project number | 5R01NS135614-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11194507 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are adults who survived a spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage and can undergo MRI scans and follow-up cognitive testing.
✕Less likely to help
People without a prior spontaneous brain bleed or those unable to have MRI scans would not be eligible and would not directly benefit from this research.
What this research studies
If I join, doctors will get MRI scans soon after my brain bleed to look for small, silent strokes that I wouldn't notice. They will give regular memory and thinking tests over time and repeat MRI scans to watch for white matter changes. Blood tests will be done to measure signs of chronic inflammation that might link the silent strokes to cognitive decline. The research will combine these imaging, cognitive, and blood measures to see who is most likely to develop vascular-related memory and thinking problems.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could help identify people at higher risk of dementia after a brain bleed so they can get closer monitoring and earlier interventions.
How similar studies have gone: Similar work has linked silent brain infarcts to cognitive decline in other groups and early data hint at the same pattern after brain bleeds, but it has not been definitively confirmed in this population.
Where this research is happening
-
Rush University Medical Center
Chicago, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Garg, Rajeev Kumar — Rush University Medical Center
- Study coordinator: Garg, Rajeev Kumar
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Silent brain injuries after brain bleed may predict dementia risk
A study using MRI and cognitive tests to see if hidden brain injuries after spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage help forecast later cognitive decline.
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Investigating silent brain infarcts in patients with spontaneous brain hemorrhage and their link to cognitive decline.
This study is looking at people who have survived a brain bleed to see if hidden brain damage might be affecting their thinking skills, with the hope of finding clues that could help doctors better support their brain health in the future.
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Global picture of dementia risk and memory loss across the world
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This project looks at how to safely use blood-thinning medicines in people who survived a brain bleed and also have atrial fibrillation and small vessel disease.
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Statin use after lobar intracerebral hemorrhage
This trial compares continuing versus stopping statins in people who had a lobar intracerebral hemorrhage to see how that affects repeat brain bleeds, strokes, heart attacks, and recovery over two years.
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Statin use after lobar brain hemorrhage
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.