Sleep problems after stroke
Official title: Sleep and Stroke
Funded at Harry S. Truman Memorial VA Hospital · NIH-11264874 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers are developing models to understand why people have sleep problems after a stroke so future treatments can help recovery.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Harry S. Truman Memorial VA Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Columbia, United States) |
| Project start | January 1, 2024 |
| Project end | December 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| NIH project number | 5I01BX006240-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11264874 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults who have had an ischemic stroke and continue to have sleep problems such as insomnia, excessive daytime sleepiness, or reduced REM sleep would be the most relevant candidates for future trials informed by this work.
✕Less likely to help
People whose sleep issues are unrelated to a stroke or who had a different type of brain injury (for example hemorrhagic stroke) may not benefit directly from these findings.
What this research studies
This project builds animal models that mimic the sleep disturbances people often have after an ischemic stroke of the middle cerebral artery. The team will examine which brain regions and chemical signals cause insomnia, excessive daytime sleepiness, and reduced REM sleep after stroke. They will test whether reducing those sleep disturbances can speed recovery of movement and thinking. Results are meant to point toward new therapies to improve sleep and rehabilitation after stroke.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to new ways to reduce sleep disturbances after stroke and speed functional recovery.
How similar studies have gone: Clinical studies link poor sleep to worse post-stroke outcomes and suggest improving sleep can help recovery, but animal models that reproduce post-stroke sleep problems are limited and this work is relatively novel.
Where this research is happening
-
Harry S. Truman Memorial VA Hospital
Columbia, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Thakkar, Mahesh M — Harry S. Truman Memorial VA Hospital
- Study coordinator: Thakkar, Mahesh M
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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.