Nandan Lad: Microclots as the Cause of Secondary Stroke After Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
Nandan Lad, Professor at Duke University Medical Center, Co-Founder of Pharaoh Neuro, shared a post on LinkedIn about a recent article by Ari Dienel et al., published in Experimental and Molecular Medicine, adding:
“When a brain aneurysm bursts, the bleeding and stroke is just the first injury.
Days later, a second one shows up. Half the survivors of subarachnoid hemorrhage – the deadliest kind of stroke – develop secondary strokes and delayed neurological deficits, 4 to 10 days after the rupture.
For 50 years, we’ve tried antiplatelet drugs (the same ones that prevent regular strokes) to stop it. Some trials helped. Some didn’t. The field stayed stuck.
A new paper in Nature Experimental and Molecular Medicine from UTHealth Houston by Devin McBride, H Alex Choi, Spiros Blackburn and team just resolved it. The cause: microclots. Tiny clots on the brain’s smallest blood vessels – too small to see on a routine scan.
Activating platelets leads to more microclots, worse outcomes
Depleting platelets leads to fewer microclots, better outcomes
After years of guessing, a multi-pronged target that includes cells, platelets and their downstream pathways emerges.”
Proceed to the video attached to the post.
Title: Platelets cause microvascular occlusion and delayed neurological deficits after subarachnoid hemorrhage in mice
Authors: Ari Dienel, Sung-Ha Hong, Kiara Torres, Kanako Matsumura, Jose Guzman, Peeyush Thankamani Pandit, Bibek Samal, Harveen Kaur, Samitha Nemirajaiah, Angelica Bernal, H. Alex Choi, Louise D. McCullough, Spiros L. Blackburn, Jaroslaw Aronowski, Devin W. McBride

Stay updated on all scientific advances with Hemostasis Today.
-
Jul 13, 2026, 16:01Advancing DIC Diagnosis in Cirrhosis Through Disease-Specific Risk Stratification – JTH
-
Jul 13, 2026, 15:52Joshua Muia: Presenting Our Research on ADAMTS13/VWF Dysregulation in Sepsis at ISTH 2026
-
Jul 13, 2026, 15:42Marc Carrier: Important New Data From the API-CAT Trial on Recurrent VTE During Extended Apixaban Therapy
-
Jul 13, 2026, 15:23Akshat Jain: 5 Key Clinical Takeaways from ISTH 2026
-
Jul 13, 2026, 15:15Alfonso J. Tafur: Insights on Periprocedural DOAC Management in Atrial Fibrillation at ISTH 2026
-
Jul 13, 2026, 14:42Bruno Pougault: The Global Momentum Behind Innovation in Thrombosis and Hemostasis
-
Jul 13, 2026, 14:34Julie Vassart: Optimizing DOAC Detection in an Evolving Anticoagulant Landscape at ISTH 2026
-
Jul 13, 2026, 13:57Heghine Khachatryan: The Diagnostic Dilemma of Non-Criteria Obstetric APS
-
Jul 13, 2026, 13:49Mitra Najafi: Translating Years of Innovation into Global Scientific Dialogue at ISTH 2026