Acute Vascular Imaging Centre for Oxford (OxAVIC)

A new clinical research centre at the John Radcliffe Hospital will scan stroke and heart attack patients with advanced imaging equipment while they are still in the emergency department, rather than moving them to a separate research facility. Researchers do not fully understand why many patients still suffer lasting damage despite clot-busting drugs and angioplasty. Current research facilities are either unavailable during acute events or cannot safely accommodate critically ill patients. This centre solves that problem by embedding state-of-the-art scanners directly within the accident and emergency unit, allowing scientists to watch what happens in the brain and heart in real time as treatments are administered. If the centre succeeds, it could reveal why some patients fail to recover and point toward better drug regimens, improved clot-removal techniques, or entirely new treatment strategies. The work is applied clinical research with a clear goal: reduce death and disability from strokes and heart attacks, which together remain leading causes of death and long-term disability in the UK. The centre will also serve as a hub for Oxford University researchers from cardiology, neurology, radiology, and biomedical engineering to collaborate on these common conditions.