Closing the Gaps in Stroke Care: Access, Innovation and Global Equity
By: Soumya Shashikumar, MBiotech
Interviewee: Linnea Burman, President, Medtronic Neurovascular
Closing the Gaps in Stroke Care: Access, Innovation and Global Equity
By: Soumya Shashikumar, MBiotech
Interviewees: Linnea Burman, President, Medtronic Neurovascular
Expanding stroke care requires collaboration across industry, governments and global health organizations, alongside innovation grounded in patient and clinician insight.
Stroke remains one of the leading causes of death and long-term disability worldwide, with patient outcomes closely tied to how quickly individuals can access specialized care. Despite major advances in stroke intervention over the past decade, substantial gaps remain across prevention, access to treatment and long-term recovery, both in high-income countries and globally.
Linnea Burman, President of Medtronic Neurovascular, has spent more than 20 years working across Medtronic’s Neurosciences Portfolio, witnessing firsthand how stroke care has evolved.
In this Xtalks Clinical Edge interview, Linnea spoke with Xtalks about how her perspective on stroke care has changed over time, the persistent gaps in treatment and access that continue to shape outcomes and the role of partnerships in expanding care globally. She also shared how insights from patients and clinicians guide innovation in neurovascular technologies.
A Career Shaped by Stroke Survivors
Linnea’s perspective on stroke care was shaped early in her career, when she worked on a therapy used to help manage post-stroke spasticity, one of the physical symptoms that can follow a stroke and contribute to long-term disability.
At the time, her role extended well beyond product development. She spent significant time with stroke survivors and caregivers, attending meetings and visiting patients in their homes to better understand how stroke affected daily life after survival.
“I just became very passionate and developed a deep understanding of what it meant to live with the impact of stroke after somebody survived one.”
As her career progressed, Linnea moved into different parts of Medtronic, including periods when the company invested heavily in the clinical trials that helped bring mechanical thrombectomy into the forefront of stroke care. Those trials, she noted, fundamentally changed how acute ischemic stroke is treated.
While acknowledging how far the field has come, Linnea emphasized that progress in acute intervention has not eliminated broader challenges.
“We’ve made tremendous progress as a field, but there is still so much work to do on prevention, access to treatment, as well as long-term outcomes.”
“We’ve made tremendous progress as a field, but there is still so much work to do on prevention, access to treatment, as well as long-term outcomes.”
— Linnea Burman, President, Medtronic Neurovascular
“We’ve made tremendous progress as a field, but there is still so much work to do on prevention, access to treatment, as well as long-term outcomes.”
— Linnea Burman, President, Medtronic Neurovascular
The Ongoing Global Burden of Stroke
Despite advances in technology and clinical practice, Linnea described the current global burden of stroke as still unacceptably high.
She pointed to the scale of the problem, noting that nearly 12 million people worldwide experience a stroke each year, and that stroke remains the second leading cause of death and the third leading cause of disability globally.
Linnea also highlighted the seriousness of outcomes following stroke, stating that one in four stroke survivors will die within a year. She emphasized that the impact of stroke is especially severe in low- and middle-income countries, where most stroke-related deaths and disabilities occur.
“The current burden of stroke is still unacceptable.”
Beyond clinical outcomes, Linnea stressed that disparities in access to care are compounded by gaps in community education. Recognizing stroke symptoms and acting quickly remain critical barriers to improving outcomes, regardless of geography.
She underscored the importance of continuing to educate every generation about the signs of stroke and the urgency of rapid treatment.
Partnerships as a Pathway to Broader Access
Linnea was clear that improving equity and access to advanced stroke care cannot be achieved by a single organization.
She described Medtronic’s leadership role as one rooted in collaboration, working alongside industry partners, governments and global health organizations. This includes partnerships with companies such as Philips, participation in the Global Stroke Action Coalition and engagement with initiatives like Mission Thrombectomy through the Society of Vascular and Interventional Neurology.
Through these efforts, Linnea explained, the work spans multiple fronts: removing structural barriers to care, generating the local clinical evidence required to support adoption of therapies in different countries and helping governments understand both the health and economic burden of stroke.
“We help governments understand the burden of stroke and the cost-effectiveness of treating stroke more effectively.”
Education remains a priority even in countries with advanced healthcare systems. Linnea noted that access within the United States is still uneven, reinforcing the need for continued physician training and public awareness efforts.
She also emphasized the urgency of time in acute stroke care.
“There’s a saying that time is brain, and we know that 1.9 million neurons are destroyed every minute during an acute ischemic stroke, so time is really critical.”
“There’s a saying that time is brain, and we know that 1.9 million neurons are destroyed every minute during an acute ischemic stroke, so time is really critical.”
— Linnea Burman, President, Medtronic Neurovascular
“There’s a saying that time is brain, and we know that 1.9 million neurons are destroyed every minute during an acute ischemic stroke, so time is really critical.”
— Linnea Burman, President, Medtronic Neurovascular
Keeping Patients and Clinicians at the Center of Innovation
Linnea described a patient-first culture as foundational to how Medtronic Neurovascular approaches innovation, reflecting a broader organizational mission that has been in place since the company’s earliest days.
She highlighted internal traditions designed to keep patient experiences visible across the organization, including an annual program in which employees worldwide hear directly from individuals whose lives have been affected by Medtronic technologies.
“These stories are so powerful and really assign a face and a name for all of our employees around the world.”
Beyond culture, Linnea emphasized the importance of clinical leadership in shaping product development. She pointed to the addition of a Chief Medical Officer with decades of clinical practice, as well as long-standing R&D leadership with deep experience in neuroscience and neurovascular innovation.
According to Linnea, this combination of mission-driven culture and clinical expertise helps ensure that development decisions remain grounded in real patient and clinician needs.
Addressing Unmet Needs in Neurovascular Care
Looking ahead, Linnea framed innovation at Medtronic Neurovascular as a continuous effort to identify and address unmet needs, whether in disease areas that remain undertreated or patient populations that receive insufficient attention.
She pointed to a recent US approval for a liquid embolic device used to block abnormal blood vessels, now indicated for embolization of the middle meningeal artery as an adjunct to surgery in the treatment of chronic subdural hematoma. She described the condition as one that can arise from trauma or present more chronically, with leaky vessels contributing to diminished quality of life.
“We want to make sure that our innovation is not just iterative, but truly addresses unmet needs — whether for a disease state or a technology that can make things better for patients and clinicians.”
For Linnea, the stakes remain personal and immediate.
ABOUT Linnea Burman
Linnea Burman is SVP and President of the Neurovascular Operating Unit at Medtronic. Burman joined Medtronic in 2000 and previously served as VP and General Manager of Enabling Technologies within the Cranial and Spinal Technologies (CST) business, where she drove commercial growth strategies, innovative solutions and a culture of collaboration. Burman is responsible for portfolio strategy, product development, commercial execution and overall financial performance of the global business.