Round-the-clock stroke clot removal service launches across South Yorkshire for stroke patients
Stroke patients across South Yorkshire can now access a potentially life-saving clot removal procedure any time of the day or night, seven days a week.
The expanded mechanical thrombectomy service, which is provided at the Hallamshire Hospital, has already started treating patients overnight including a 91-year-old who had a major blood vessel in her brain blocked by a blood clot. Just hours after the procedure, which was undertaken at 2.30am, she was back on the stroke unit to continue her recovery.
Mechanical thrombectomy is used to treat some of the most severe types of strokes and is performed by a highly skilled interventional neuroradiologist. It involves removing a blood clot from a large blood vessel in the brain and restoring blood flow to brain tissue. The sooner the procedure is performed, the more brain can be 'saved', decreasing the risk of severe disability and improving outcomes by giving patients the best chance of recovery.
Around 200 stroke patients were treated with mechanical thrombectomy during normal working hours in 2025. Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is one of 24 regional stroke centres across England, and the only centre in the South Yorkshire region, to offer the procedure.
Dr Jessica Redgrave, Consultant Neurologist and co-Clinical Lead for Hyperacute Stroke, said: "A stroke can strike at any time, day or night. For some stroke patients, having a mechanical thrombectomy can make the difference between lifelong severe disability and walking out of the hospital independently. It is a time-critical treatment, so we are delighted to be providing this 24/7.
"Since extending the hours of service, we have already treated several patients who may have previously missed the time window for treatment. This development has been the result of a tremendous collaboration across the whole regional stroke network, incorporating many different medical specialities, the ambulance services and senior managers and clinicians from South Yorkshire NHS Trusts. We are grateful to all those who contributed to the launch of this service expansion."
Stroke Consultant Professor Joyce Balami co-led the service development and her research in 2016 also contributed to NICE's endorsement of the technique. She added: “I am thrilled that patients in South Yorkshire can now access this treatment round the clock."
