[Current issues of treatment and rehabilitation of patients with neurological disorders and the consequences of COVID-19. Resolution of Advisory Board]. / Osnovnye napravleniya lecheniya i reabilitatsii nevrologicheskikh proyavlenii COVID-19. Rezolyutsiya soveta ekspertov.

Last year the global medical community faced the pandemic of the new coronavirus infection caused by SARS-CoV-2. To date, there is considerable expert experience, which indicates that the brain, along with the corresponding respiratory system, is a target organ for a new coronavirus infection. Moreover, a number of symptoms from the central and peripheral nervous system can persist for several weeks, months, and even tens of months. To designate such protracted clinical conditions, a new definition was introduced: «Post-COVID-19 Condition¼. Advisory Board of Neurologists and Rehabilitation Therapists met to, discuss of practical experience and taking into account scientific information about COVID-19, which was available at the time of the meeting, to develop unified approaches for the management of patients with neurological complications and the consequences of a new coronavirus infection. The Advisory Board worked out a resolution in which formulated the tactics of managing patients with neurological manifestations of COVID-19. The substantiation of the importance and expediency of the development and implementation of a special program of clinical examination of patients who have undergone COVID-19, which would include a clinical examination with a detailed assessment of cognitive functions to early identification and diagnosis of neurodegeneration and subsequent therapy, is given.

[Current issues in the rehabilitation of stroke patients against the background of a new coronavirus infection (COVID-19). Resolution of the Council of Experts]. / Aktual'nye voprosy reabilitatsii patsientov s insul'tom na fone novoi koronavirusnoi infektsii (COVID-19). Rezolyutsiya Soveta ekspertov.

The pandemic of the new coronavirus infection caused by SARS-CoV-2 has forced to reconsider the methods of rehabilitation of patients with emergency conditions, including neurology. The Council of Experts of Neurologists and Rehabilitation Therapists gathered to develop unified approaches to manage stroke patients based on a discussion of practical experience and, taking into account the scientific information on COVID-19 that was available by the time of the meeting. Stroke is a serious disabling condition that requires maximum rehabilitation efforts at all stages of medical care. In the context of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus epidemic, the process of medical rehabilitation and the routing of patients with stroke is undergoing major changes. Combining COVID-19 and stroke requires new approaches to rehabilitation and patient management. During the meeting, a resolution was developed in which the experts formulated the tactics of medical rehabilitation of patients with stroke and COVID-19 at the first and second stages. The arguments of the importance and practicability of carrying out measures of medical rehabilitation at the third stage is given and the need to continue consultations on the indicated topic is revealed.

[Modern strategies of protection of hypoxic-ischemic brain damage]. / Sovremennye strategii zashchity pri gipoksicheski-ishemicheskom povrezhdenii golovnogo mozga.

Nowadays, there are two complementary approaches to treatment of patients with ischemic stroke: reperfusion and neuroprotection. The main purpose of neuroprotection is to intervene ischemic cascade at every stage of the pathological process and thus avoid the death of nerve cells and expand the therapeutic window for reperfusion therapy. The use of drugs with neurotrophic, antioxidant and neuroregenerative effects is pathogenically explained at all stages of post stroke rehabilitation. Ethylmethylhydroxypyridine succinate (mexidol) is a derivative of succinic acid with antihypoxic, membrane protective, nootropic, anticonvulsant and sedative action. The majority of researchers confirmed the positive effect of mexidol expressed as the marked regression of neurological deficit and wider opportunities for further early rehabilitation. The results of the randomized double blind multicenter placebo-controlled, parallel-group trial of the efficacy and safety of prolonged sequential therapy with mexidol in the acute and early recovery stages of hemispheric ischemic stroke (EPICA) were published in 2017. The results of the study showed the best positive dynamics of neurological function recovery in case of timely treatment with mexidol with the following two month therapy. The safety of the long-term use of mexidol was confirmed.