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According to a new animal study conducted by researchers from the University of Montana, psychostimulant drug methamphetamine seems to reduce brain damage following stroke. The scientists claim to have small dosages of meth confer 80 to 90 percent protection of neurons when administered after a stroke.

The researchers found that small amounts of meth created a protective effect, while higher doses increased damage. They also learned that lower doses of the drug helped lessen damage up to 16 hours after a stroke. This discovery was significant because the current leading clot-busting drug used for strokes must be administered within three hours, said Poulsen, a faculty member of UM's Department of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences.

Further studies were conducted using live gerbils, and found out that meth-treated gerbils were calmer and had as much intact neurons as those which hadn't had strokes. The results of these trials will be presented in the upcoming Society of Neuroscience conference in Atlanta on Oct 14-18. See feature story from Yahoo News.