Now, a 'cooling' cap to treat stroke patients

The 'chilled' cap reduces the temperature of the scalp by about four degree Celsius, protecting the brain cells by putting them into a suspended state where the need for oxygen is either cut or removed.

Doctors in UK are leading a Europe-wide trial, involving 14 countries and 1,500 patients, using the chilled caps to maintain brain function, the 'Daily Express' reported.

"This could be one of the biggest breakthroughs in stroke treatment with the potential to save the lives of a huge number of people," study leader Professor Malcolm Macleod of Edinburgh University said.

A stroke occurs after a clot forms in a blood vessel stopping the supply of oxygenated blood reaching brain cells. Without oxygen, brain cells die and neurological damage occurs.

Researchers said the same technique has also been used on newborn babies starved of oxygen at birth and accident victims.

"It's rather like the way some animals hibernate. Their bodies close down to just ticking over," Macleod said.

Neurologists have up to six hours to start treatment after the stroke before it becomes ineffective.

About 100,000 patients a year suffer a clot on the brain. A third of them die within six months, and a further third are left severely handicapped, the report said.

"Cooling is a particularly promising area of stroke research," Dr Clare Walton of The Stroke Association said.

If the trials are successful the caps could be in use by 2017.