SINGAPORE, June 20, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- NeuroAiD, a stroke treatment based on Traditional Chinese Medicine, increases the odds of achieving a better functional outcome, according to research published online in the journal Stroke.

The CHIMES study is an academic international double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial which included 1,100 patients from several countries who had suffered an ischemic stroke of intermediate severity within 72 hours, treated and monitored for 3 months. Researchers found that patients who were taking NeuroAiD at acute stage had an 11% increase in the odds of achieving independence in function and being able to perform daily activities at the end of three months. This effect was even greater when NeuroAiD was started beyond 48 hours after stroke onset, with an increase of 39%.

The odds ratio was the highest among recently completed stroke trials of neuroprotective agents. The benefit observed is clinically relevant and might have reached statistical significance with a larger sample size. In addition the study confirmed the excellent safety profile of NeuroAiD. Stroke survivors who were on NeuroAiD had fewer adverse events than those in the control group. Further studies will likely look into the benefits of longer duration of treatment.

Prof. Christopher Chen, neurologist at the National University of Singapore and the principal investigator of the CHIMES study, said the results looked very promising and suggested that the effectiveness of such herbal supplements could have a great impact on stroke management. "I think one thing which is very clear is that NeuroAiD is safe in acute stroke. A previous meta-analysis suggested that NeuroAiD is efficacious and safe in the chronic stage of stroke. Now the Chimes study has provided us with much more reliable data about the safety and efficacy of NeuroAiD in acute stroke. I think the CHIMES results are not only a step forward, but also a major achievement."

Occurring everytwo seconds, stroke is one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity worldwide. Each year, 20 million people suffer from the devastating disease. However, there are only a few effective, generally accepted and specific treatments available, such as thrombolytic treatment for highly selected patients. Therefore, there is an increasing need for multi-modal therapies to help more patients recover quickly and effectively from stroke. Moleac, a Singapore based bio-pharma company, developed NeuroAiD to meet this need.

The large-scale investigator-initiated study is an independent initiative conducted by the CHIMES Society, an international partnership of key opinion leaders in neurology. It is among the first large-scale endeavours to investigate the use of a product from natural substances in reducing disability after an acute stroke in a rigorous manner.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is used extensively in Asia to facilitate recovery after stroke and has become an increasingly important player in the global health system and economy.Recent rigorous medical studies conducted on some TCMs have confirmed that they have, among other properties, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, which render them attractive options to be investigated for stroke recovery.

About MoleacTo address therapeutic gaps, Moleac has pioneered a new drug development approach, looking at sources of innovation from Traditional Medicines, hence shortening considerably drug development cycle time and investment to bring medicine to sufferers' unaddressed needs. Moleac's neurorestorative drug NeuroAiD reaches patients in more than 30 countries.

About CHIMES SocietyThe CHIMES Society is a unique international partnership which consists of an innovative academic industry collaboration with the objective to establish new stroke treatments. CHIMES is a Singaporean non-profit society founded by a group of experts in stroke and South-East Asian stroke clinicians interested to implement a research project:the NeuroAiD Efficacy on stroke recovery trial (CHIMES trial).

CHIMES Society is the recipient from a research grant from theNational Medical Research Council in Singapore (NMRC)which supports the implementation of CHIMES trial in Singapore.

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Stroke Treatment Based on Traditional Chinese Medicine Increases Chances of Recovery