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Stroke Care in the Age of AI: Innovation from Symptom Onset to Recovery

By: | Tags: , , , | July 9th, 2025

By Dr. Jacob Sambursky

The Urgency of Stroke Care and the Promise of AI

Stroke remains one of the top causes of disability and death worldwide, with over 795,000 people affected each year in the U.S. alone. Getting the right care fast is crucial, but challenges like delayed imaging or access to specialists often get in the way of the best outcomes. Artificial intelligence (AI) is emerging as a transformative force in stroke management, offering data-driven solutions to accelerate diagnosis, optimize treatment decisions, and personalize rehabilitation. In acute stroke care, every minute counts—each minute of ischemia results in the loss of approximately 1.9 million neurons. That’s why you’ll often hear the phrase in the world of stroke care: “Time is brain.” Every minute truly counts.

AI in Acute Imaging and Diagnostics

AI centered around imaging analysis and communication integration has already been implemented into acute stroke workflows across the country through AI platforms like Viz.ai, RapidAI, and Brainomix, among others. AI-driven imaging platforms leverage deep learning algorithms to analyze CT scans rapidly to identify critical abnormalities like intracranial hemorrhage, aneurysms, large vessel occlusions, and early ischemic change with high accuracy. Integrating AI can reduce time to treatment by an average of 22 minutes, preserving an estimated 42 million neurons per patient, potentially preserving memory, mobility, and independence.

Highlighted in the VALIDATE (Validation of Artificial Intelligence to Limit Delays in Acute Stroke Treatment and Endovascular Therapy) study, Dr. Theresa Sevilis and colleagues evaluated the effectiveness of the Viz.ai platform in expediting stroke care. This large multi-center study demonstrated that hospitals utilizing Viz.ai experienced a significant reduction in time from patient arrival to first contact with the neuro-interventionalist for large vessel occlusions (LVO), averaging a 39.5-minute decrease. This results in faster “door-to-puncture” times; a known time metric associated with clinical outcomes in LVO stroke and closely monitored at stroke centers (thrombectomy-ready and comprehensive stroke centers).

AI-Supported Clinical Decision-Making

The impact of AI on stroke care even goes beyond imaging, with new AI-powered clinical decision support systems integrating patient history, laboratory results, and imaging data to recommend personalized treatment pathways. These systems can assist clinicians in making evidence-based decisions swiftly, improving patient outcomes and aligning management more closely with guideline-directed therapies. Although still in experimental stages, vascular neurologists are optimistic about its role in the future of personalized stroke care plans.

AI in Personalized Stroke Rehabilitation

AI is also expanding into stroke rehabilitation, where machine learning models are now being used to predict a patient’s recovery potential and adjust therapy plans in real time, helping tailor rehab to each person’s needs and progress.

Wearable technologies powered by AI enable continuous monitoring and real-time feedback, making it easier for patients to complete therapy from the comfort of their homes. This kind of home-based rehabilitation is more than just convenient, but also essential. Many stroke survivors face real-world barriers to in-person care, such as:

  • Lack of transportation or available caregivers
  • Physician limitations that make driving unsafe or impossible
  • Living in rural or underserved areas with limited access to rehab facilities

By addressing these challenges, AI-driven tele-rehabilitation platforms are helping more patients overcome these obstacles and stay engaged in their recovery journey wherever they are.

Enhancing Telestroke Networks with AI Integration

Telestroke services have become essential in providing rapid stroke expertise, especially in regions lacking immediate access to neurologists. AI integration into large telestroke networks enhances these services by utilizing automated imaging analysis, predictive analytics for triage and resource allocation, and workflow optimization streamlining communication between care teams (emergency provider, stroke neurologist, neuro-interventionalist, and anesthesia teams). STRokE DOC-AI, published in New England Journal of Medicine in 2024, highlighted these benefits associated with AI in a typical hub and spoke telestroke system. These enhancements lead to more efficient stroke care delivery, particularly in large-scale telestroke systems where rapid coordination is vital.

Predicting Recovery and Tailoring Rehabilitation Plans

Looking ahead, one of the most promising areas for AI in stroke care is its ability to predict recovery trajectories. By analyzing clinical and imaging data, AI models can forecast functional outcomes—such as mobility and cognitive function—allowing clinicians to design personalized rehabilitation plans that reflect each patient’s specific needs, career goals, hobbies, and pre-existing limitations. This tailored approach not only enhances recovery but also boosts patient satisfaction, a core element of the utility-weighted modified Rankin Scale, the most common tool for evaluating post-stroke outcomes.

Challenges: Privacy, Transparency, and Equity

Despite its obvious benefits in improving clinical outcomes, integrating AI into stroke care comes with important challenges. These include:

  • Privacy: AI requires large volumes of high-quality, real-world data to improve, which raises concerns around patient data security.
  • Interpretability: Many clinicians question the transparency of AI algorithms and whether the datasets used to train them are representative of diverse populations.
  • Dependability: For AI to be trusted, it must be integrated seamlessly into clinical workflows and consistently deliver reliable results.
  • Equity: Advanced AI tools can be costly, raising concerns about fair access. If underrepresented populations aren’t included in the datasets, AI’s effectiveness across different groups may be limited.

The Road Ahead: AI Across the Stroke Continuum

The future of stroke care will likely see deeper AI integration across the continuum—from predictive analytics identifying at-risk individuals to telemedicine platforms extending specialist expertise to underserved regions in acute treatment decisions through recovery. Success will depend on multidisciplinary collaboration among clinicians, data scientists, and policymakers to develop transparent, secure, equitable, and patient-centered AI solutions. As AI continues to evolve, it holds the potential to redefine stroke management, improving outcomes, break down barriers, and empowering both patients and healthcare providers.

Conclusion: A New Era in Stroke Care

Overall, artificial intelligence is revolutionizing stroke care by enhancing diagnostic speed, guiding evidence-based treatment decisions, expediting communication, and personalizing rehabilitation strategies. While challenges remain, dynamic research and continued application of AI algorithms are rapidly shaping a new era of data-driven stroke care and evaluation—one where each second saved protects brain function and improves quality of life.

Nattasha Acevedo, MD

Dr. Acevedo received her medical degree from the Ponce School of Medicine in Puerto Rico and did her neurology residency at Montefiore Medical Center in New York. She went on to do a clinical neurophysiology fellowship at Emory School of Medicine in Atla nta, Georgia and then joined private practice in Fort Myers, Florida. She currently resides in San Juan, Puerto Rico. She likes running, paddle boarding and spending time with family.
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Bernadette Borte, MD

Dr. Borte received her medical degree from St. Matthew’s University School of Medicine in Grand Cayman. She completed her neurology residency at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City, Iowa. Her areas of interest include inpatient neurology and acute stroke. When not working, she enjoys spending time outdoors with her family. Dr. Borte joined the TeleSpecialist family in March of 2019.
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Mazen Almidani, MD

Dr. Almidani is board certified in pediatrics by the American Board of Pediatrics and board certified in epilepsy, as well as neurology with special  qualification in child neurology by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology.  Dr. Almidani is happily married with 4 children. His oldest son has autism and his daughter has complicated seizures; both were a drive for him to become a neurologist. Dr. Almidani enjoys soccer, running and spending time with his family. He is very involved with his sons’ therapy and helping with daily challenges. He is double board certified in Pediatric and Adult Neurology and Epilepsy. He sees children and adults. He also participates in charities for children in Syria who may be underprivileged and/or affected by the war. Dr. Almidani joined TeleSpecialists in August 2020.
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Amanda Cheshire, MD

Dr. Cheshire received her medical degree from the University of Louisville School of Medicine in Louisville, Kentucky. She completed her neurology residency at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. She did a fellowship in neurophysiology at the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Dr. Cheshire is double board certified in neurology and clinical neurophysiology. She enjoys traveling, reading and music. She currently resides in Viera, Florida.  Dr. Cheshire joined TeleSpecialists in June 2019.
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Jessica Floyd, MD

Dr. Floyd completed her neurology residency at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida followed by fellowship training in clinical neurophysiology with focus in EEG and epilepsy at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, South Carolina. She has particular interest in hospital neurology and patient education as well as the blossoming specialty of lifestyle medicine. She strives to take advantage of every encounter with patients and medical staff to empower them to do their own research into how daily thoughts, choices, and habits can add up to create greater and longer-lasting brain and neurologic health for ourselves and our loved ones. She lives in Florence, South Carolina with her awesome husband of 13 plus years and three beautiful children. She is an avid yogi, astrologer, and lover of food and all things neurology! Dr. Floyd joined the TeleSpecialist family in July 2017.
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Nancy Futrell, MD

Dr. Futrell received her medical degree from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah. She also did her neurology residency at the University of Utah as well as a research fellowship in cerebral vascular disease at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, Florida. She currently resides in Salt Lake City, Utah. She has authored 2 books and 50 peer reviewed papers. 
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Rebecca Jimenez-Sanders, MD

Dr. Jimenez Sanders received her undergraduate degree from Emory University, and her medical degree from the San Juan Bautista School of Medicine in Puerto Rico. She completed her neurology residency at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Florida, where she also did a specialized headache medicine and facial pain fellowship. She currently resides in Tampa, Florida with her husband and her two daughters. She is also fluent in Spanish and Italian languages, and enjoys photography, baking, boating, and biking.
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Cory Lamar, MD

Dr. Lamar received his medical degree from Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee. He completed his internship and residency at Wake Forest Baptist Health in Winston Salem, North Carolina. Following residency, he completed a clinical fellowship in neurophysiology, with a concentration in epilepsy. He currently resides in Florida and enjoys outdoor activities.
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Clifford Meyers, MD

Dr. Meyers received his medical degree from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island and his MBA from the Simon School of Business at the University of Rochester in Rochester, New York. He completed his neurology residency at the University of Rochester, where he also did a neurophysiology fellowship. Dr. Meyers resides in Webster, New York with his wife and daughter. When not doing teleneurology, he enjoys playing sports with his wife and daughter.
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Tao Tong, MD

Dr. Tong received her medical degree from the University of Miami School of Medicine in Miami, Florida. She completed her neurology residency at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, Florida, where she also did a neuromuscular/EMG fellowship.  She currently resides in College Station, Texas. Dr. Tong is married with two boys. She enjoys spending time with her family, traveling and reading.
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Shubhangi Chumble, MD

Dr. Chumble attended BJ Medical School. She is a board certified neurologist with a subspeciality interest in sleep medicine. Dr. Chumble did her residency at Howard University in Washington DC and has practiced neurology since 2001 in private and corporate settings. She lives in Melbourne, Florida and loves the sunshine state. Her hobbies include yoga, meditation, cooking , traveling and meeting new people. She also loves to do stained glass, pottery and painting. She joined TeleSpecialists in June 2019.
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