scholarly journals Intravenous Thrombolysis for Acute Mild Ischemic Stroke Patients: Higher ABCD2 Score Associated with Better Outcome

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Runnan Li ◽  
Chunyan Han ◽  
Xiuying Cai ◽  
Yan Kong ◽  
Lulu Zhang ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Up to 30% of patients with mild ischemic stroke suffer neurologic deterioration. However, optimal medical approaches of such patients remain controversial given the efficacy and safety of intravenous thrombolysis (IVT). The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether patients with acute mild stroke stratified with ABCD2 score (the risk of stroke on basis of age, blood pressure, clinical features, duration of symptoms, and presence of diabetes mellitus) could benefit from IVT. Methods: Among 3321 patients with a final diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke, we retrospectively included 224 patients identified with acute mild neurologic deficits (National Institution of Health Stroke Scale, NIHSS ≤5) treated with or without IVT. Odds ratios (OR) with their confidence intervals (CI) for outcomes between groups were assessed by using multivariable binary logistic regression analyses. And the heterogeneity of treatment effect magnitude for excellent outcome at 90d (modified Rankin Scale [mRS] 0-1) was estimated in different subgroups. Results: A total of 224 cases were enrolled, 106 receiving IVT and 118 treated with secondary stroke prevention strategies alone. At 7d, 30 (28.3%) patients with IVT treatment versus 16 (13.6%) patients not receiving IVT achieved significant improvement (≥4-point NIHSS score decrease or complete resolution; OR, 2.448; 95%CI, 1.204-4.977; P=0.013). At 90d, excellent outcome was achieved in 83 (78.3%) patients treated with IVT versus 77 (65.35%) patients without IVT treatment (OR, 3.156; 95%CI, 1.526-6.528; P=0.002), especially in those with ABCD2 score ≥5 (OR, 2.768; 95%CI, 1.196-6.406; P=0.017) and with stroke subtype of large artery atherosclerosis (OR, 5.616; 95%CI, 1.080-29.210; P=0.040). Besides, 7(6.6%) IVT-treated patients versus 2 (1.7%) non-IVT-treated patients developed intracranial hemorrhage (ICH; P=0.359), among these only 1 (0.9%) was symptomatic ICH in IVT group. Conclusions: For acute mild ischemic stroke patients, we reassured the safety and especially the efficacy of IVT at 7- and 90-days. Patients with 5 or more of ABCD2 score and stroke subtype of large artery atherosclerosis might benefit more from IVT.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Runnan Li ◽  
Chunyan Han ◽  
Xiuying Cai ◽  
Yan Kong ◽  
Lulu Zhang ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Up to 30% of patients with mild ischemic stroke suffer neurologic deterioration. However, optimal medical approaches of such patients remain controversial given the efficacy and safety of intravenous thrombolysis (IVT). The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether patients with acute mild stroke stratified with ABCD2 score (the risk of stroke on basis of age, blood pressure, clinical features, duration of symptoms, and presence of diabetes mellitus) could benefit from IVT. Methods: Among 3321 patients with a final diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack, we retrospectively included 227 patients identified with acute mild neurologic deficits (National Institution of Health Stroke Scale, NIHSS ≤5) treated with or without IVT. Odds ratios (OR) with their confidence intervals (CI) for outcomes between groups were assessed by using multivariable binary logistic regression analyses. And the heterogeneity of treatment effect magnitude for excellent outcome at 90 days (modified Rankin Scale [mRS] 0-1) was estimated in different subgroups. Results: A total of 227 cases were enrolled, 108 receiving IVT and 119 treated with secondary stroke prevention strategies alone. Patients receiving IVT had more history of atrial fibrillation. At 7 days, 32 (29.6%) patients with IVT treatment versus 17 (14.3%) patients not receiving IVT achieved significant improvement (≥4-point NIHSS score decrease; OR, 2.57; 95%CI, 1.29-5.12; P=0.007). At 90 days, excellent outcome was achieved in 85 (78.7%) patients treated with IVT versus 78 (65.5%) patients without IVT treatment (OR: 2.95; 95% CI, 1.44-6.03; P=0.003), especially in those with ABCD2 score≥4 (78.4% versus 64.6%; OR, 2.81; 95%CI, 1.31-6.03; P=0.008). Besides, 7(6.5%) IVT-treated patients versus 2 (1.7%) non-IVT-treated patients developed intracranial hemorrhage (ICH; OR, 4.05; 95%CI, 0.82-19.96; P=0.085), among these only 1 (0.9%) was symptomatic ICH with IVT treatment. Conclusions: For acute mild ischemic stroke patients, we reassured the safety and especially the efficacy of IVT at 7- and 90-days. Patients with 4 or more of ABCD2 score might benefit more from IVT. Keywords: Prognosis, risk scores, stroke, intravenous thrombolysis.


2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 352-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yahia Lodi ◽  
Varun Reddy ◽  
Gorge Petro ◽  
Ashok Devasenapathy ◽  
Anas Hourani ◽  
...  

Background and purposeIn recent trials, acute ischemic stroke (AIS) from large artery occlusion (LAO) was resistant to intravenous thrombolysis and adjunctive stent retriever thrombectomy (SRT) was associated with better perfusion and outcomes. Despite benefit, 39–68% of patients had poor outcomes. Thrombectomy in AIS with LAO within 3 h is performed secondary to intravenous thrombolysis, which may be associated with delay. The purpose of our study is to evaluate the safety, feasibility, recanalization rate, and outcome of primary SRT within 3 h without intravenous thrombolysis in AIS from LAO.MethodsBased on an institutionally approved protocol, stroke patients with LAO within 3 h were offered primary SRT as an alternative to intravenous recombinant tissue plasminogen activator. Consecutive patients who underwent primary SRT for LAO within 3 h from 2012 to 2014 were enrolled. Outcomes were measured using the modified Rankin Scale (mRS).Results18 patients with LAO of mean age 62.83±15.32 years and median NIH Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score 16 (10–23) chose primary SRT after giving informed consent. Near complete (TICI 2b in 1 patient) or complete (TICI 3 in 17 patients) recanalization was observed in all patients. Time to recanalization from symptom onset and groin puncture was 188.5±82.7 and 64.61±40.14 min, respectively. NIHSS scores immediately after thrombectomy, at 24 h and 30 days were 4 (0–12), 1 (0–12), and 0 (0–4), respectively. Asymptomatic perfusion-related hemorrhage developed in four patients (22%). 90-day outcomes were mRS 0 in 50%, mRS 1 in 44.4%, and mRS 2 in 5.6%.ConclusionsOur study demonstrates that primary SRT in AIS from LAO is safe and feasible and is associated with complete recanalization and good outcome. Further study is required.


2017 ◽  
Vol 70 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 203-208
Author(s):  
Zeljko Zivanovic ◽  
Dragan Adamovic ◽  
Aleksandra Lucic-Prokin ◽  
Timea Kokai-Zekic ◽  
Jelena Sekaric ◽  
...  

Introduction. Atrial fibrillation is associated with an increased risk of ischemic stroke. The benefit of intravenous thrombolysis in patients with acute ischemic stroke and atrial fibrillation is still unclear. The aim of the study was to assess and compare the effects of intravenous thrombolysis in stroke patients with and without atrial fibrillation. Material and Methods. We analyzed stroke patients who were treated with intravenous thrombolysis. Patients were divided into two groups according to the presence of atrial fibrillation. Demographic, clinical and radiological characteristics of patients were compared between the two groups. The treatment efficacy was evaluated in relation to the improvement of neurological status after 24 hours, and functional recovery after three months. Binary logistic regression was used to evaluate predictors of outcome. Results. From a total of 188 patients, 39.4% presented with atrial fibrillation. Patients with atrial fibrillation were older (69.4 vs. 62.6 years; p <0.0001), with female predominance (43.2% vs. 28.9%, p = 0.04) and had clinically more severe stroke (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale, score on admission 15.4 vs. 12.1; p = 0.0001). Significantly more patients without atrial fibrillation (61.4% vs. 43.2%, p = 0.01) had a favorable clinical outcome at three months after stroke. Nevertheless, atrial fibrillation was not an independent predictor of poor outcome at three months after stroke (p=0.66). Conclusion. Acute ischemic stroke patients, with atrial fibrillation, treated with intravenous thrombolysis, had worse outcomes than patients without atrial fibrillation did. However, it is mainly due to older age and a more severe stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation.


Stroke ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 51 (Suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua Santucci ◽  
Takashi Shimoyama ◽  
Ken Uchino

Introduction: Electrocardiogram (ECG) findings of premature atrial contraction and prolonged PR interval are associated with risk of onset atrial fibrillation (AF) in cryptogenic stroke. We sought to see if normal ECG and AF incidence is incompletely understood. Methods: From a prospective single-hospital stroke registry from 2018, we identified ischemic stroke patients who had ECG done on admission for review. We excluded patients with AF on admission ECG, history of AF, and implanted device with cardiac monitoring capability. Normal ECG was interpreted based on the standardized reporting guidelines for ECG studies evaluating risk stratification of emergency department patients. Stroke subtype was diagnosed according to the TOAST classification: large artery atherosclerosis (LAA), small vessel occlusion (SVO), cardioembolism, others/undetermined and embolic stoke of undetermined source (ESUS) criteria. We compared the incidence of newly diagnosed AF during hospitalization and from outpatient cardiac event monitoring between normal and abnormal ECG. Results: Of the 558 consecutive acute ischemic stroke patients, we excluded 135 with AF on admission ECG or history of AF and 9 with implanted devices. Of the remaining 414 patients that were included in the study, ESUS (31.2%) was the most frequent stroke subtype, followed by LAA (30.0%), SVO (14.0%), others/undetermined (15.7%), and cardioembolism (9.2%). Normal ECG was observed in 125 patients (30.2%). Cardioembolic subtype was less frequent in the normal versus abnormal ECG group (1.6% vs. 12.5%, p<0.001). New AF was detected in 17/414 patients (4.1%) during hospitalization. Of these 17 patients, none had normal ECG (0/125) and all had abnormal ECG (17/289, 5.9%) (p=0.002). After discharge, of 111 patients undergoing 4-week outpatient cardiac monitoring, new AF was detected in 16 (14.4%). Of these 16 patients, only 1 had a normal ECG (1/35, 2.9%) while 15 had abnormal ECG (15/76, 19.7%) (p=0.02). Conclusions: Normal ECG at admission for acute ischemic stroke is associated with low likelihood of detection of new atrial fibrillation in either the inpatient or outpatient setting.


2021 ◽  
pp. 106-111
Author(s):  
Nandini Mitta ◽  
Sapna Erat Sreedharan ◽  
Sankara P. Sarma ◽  
Padmavathy N. Sylaja

<b><i>Background:</i></b> The impact of gender on acute ischemic stroke, in terms of presentation, severity, etiology, and outcome, is increasingly getting recognized. Here, we analyzed the gender-related differences in etiology and outcome of ischemic stroke in South India. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> Patients with first ever ischemic stroke within 1 week of onset presenting to the Comprehensive Stroke Care Centre, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum, India, were included in our study. Clinical and risk factor profile was documented. The stroke severity was assessed using the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) at onset, and stroke subtype classification was done using Trial of Org 10172 in Acute Ischemic Stroke criteria. The 3-month functional outcome was assessed using the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) with excellent outcome defined as an mRS ≤2. <b><i>Results:</i></b> Of the 742 patients, 250 (33.7%) were females. The age, clinical profile, and rate of reperfusion therapies did not differ between the genders. Women suffered more severe strokes (mean NIHSS 9.5 vs. 8.4, <i>p</i> = 0.03). While large artery atherosclerosis was more common in men (21.3% vs. 14.8%, <i>p</i> = 0.03), cardioembolic strokes secondary to rheumatic heart disease were more common in women (27.2% vs. 19.7%, <i>p</i> = 0.02). Men had a better 3-month functional outcome compared to women (68.6% vs. 61.2%, <i>p</i> = 0.04), but was not statistically significant after adjusting for confounders. <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> Our data, from a single comprehensive stroke unit from South India, suggest that stroke in women are different, yet similar in many ways to men. Guideline-based treatment can result in comparable short-term outcomes, irrespective of admission stroke severity.


Stroke ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 51 (Suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Takashi Shimoyama ◽  
Kunio Nakamura ◽  
Sibaji Gaj ◽  
Shivakrishna Kovi ◽  
Ken Uchino

Background and Purpose: Calcification of the intracranial carotid artery is recognized as a risk factor for stroke in the general population. The significance of vascular calcifications in its relationship stroke mechanisms is incompletely understood. We hypothesized that vascular calcium quantification using CT angiography (CTA) can differ by stroke mechanism among ischemic stroke patients. Methods: From a prospective single-hospital stroke registry from 2018, we identified ischemic stroke patients who underwent CTA. Automatic artery and calcification segmentation method measured calcification volumes in the intracranial, extracranial, and aortic arteries using deep-learning U-net model and region-grow algorithms. Stroke subtypes were diagnosed based on the TOAST classification: large artery atherosclerosis (LAA), small vessel occlusion (SVO), cardioembolism (CE), others/undetermined. We evaluated the relationship between CTA calcification volume and stroke subtypes on one-way ANOVA and Tukey’s post-hoc test. Results: Of the 558 consecutive acute ischemic stroke patients, we enrolled 388 patients (212 males; mean age 66.6 years) in the study. Others/undetermined (34.8%) was the most frequent stroke subtype, followed by CE (29.4%), LAA (25.5%), and SVO (10.3%). The overall prevalence of atherosclerotic calcification was 95.9% in stroke patients. LAA had significantly higher calcification volume with 809 mm 3 compared to SVO (390 mm 3 , P=0.040), others/undetermined (300 mm 3 , P=0.001), but not CE (860 mm 3 , P=0.958). In age < 65 years subset, LAA showed higher calcification volume with 567 mm 3 than SVO (176 mm 3 , P=0.014), CE (213 mm 3 , P=0.021) and others/undetermined (180 mm 3 , P<0.001). There were no significant differences in calcification volume among stroke subtypes in age ≥65 years. Conclusion: Atherosclerotic calcium burden with a quantitative analysis of CTA images may be useful to differentiate stroke mechanism in younger patients.


2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (5) ◽  
pp. 540-554 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adnan I Qureshi ◽  
Foad Abd-Allah ◽  
Fahmi Al-Senani ◽  
Emrah Aytac ◽  
Afshin Borhani-Haghighi ◽  
...  

Background and purpose On 11 March 2020, World Health Organization (WHO) declared the COVID-19 infection a pandemic. The risk of ischemic stroke may be higher in patients with COVID-19 infection similar to those with other respiratory tract infections. We present a comprehensive set of practice implications in a single document for clinicians caring for adult patients with acute ischemic stroke with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 infection. Methods The practice implications were prepared after review of data to reach the consensus among stroke experts from 18 countries. The writers used systematic literature reviews, reference to previously published stroke guidelines, personal files, and expert opinion to summarize existing evidence, indicate gaps in current knowledge, and when appropriate, formulate practice implications. All members of the writing group had opportunities to comment in writing on the practice implications and approved the final version of this document. Results This document with consensus is divided into 18 sections. A total of 41 conclusions and practice implications have been developed. The document includes practice implications for evaluation of stroke patients with caution for stroke team members to avoid COVID-19 exposure, during clinical evaluation and performance of imaging and laboratory procedures with special considerations of intravenous thrombolysis and mechanical thrombectomy in stroke patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 infection. Conclusions These practice implications with consensus based on the currently available evidence aim to guide clinicians caring for adult patients with acute ischemic stroke who are suspected of, or confirmed, with COVID-19 infection. Under certain circumstances, however, only limited evidence is available to support these practice implications, suggesting an urgent need for establishing procedures for the management of stroke patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 infection.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 175628642110211
Author(s):  
Georgios Magoufis ◽  
Apostolos Safouris ◽  
Guy Raphaeli ◽  
Odysseas Kargiotis ◽  
Klearchos Psychogios ◽  
...  

Recent randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTs) have revolutionized acute ischemic stroke care by extending the use of intravenous thrombolysis and endovascular reperfusion therapies in time windows that have been originally considered futile or even unsafe. Both systemic and endovascular reperfusion therapies have been shown to improve outcome in patients with wake-up strokes or symptom onset beyond 4.5 h for intravenous thrombolysis and beyond 6 h for endovascular treatment; however, they require advanced neuroimaging to select stroke patients safely. Experts have proposed simpler imaging algorithms but high-quality data on safety and efficacy are currently missing. RCTs used diverse imaging and clinical inclusion criteria for patient selection during the dawn of this novel stroke treatment paradigm. After taking into consideration the dismal prognosis of nonrecanalized ischemic stroke patients and the substantial clinical benefit of reperfusion therapies in selected late presenters, we propose rescue reperfusion therapies for acute ischemic stroke patients not fulfilling all clinical and imaging inclusion criteria as an option in a subgroup of patients with clinical and radiological profiles suggesting low risk for complications, notably hemorrhagic transformation as well as local or remote parenchymal hemorrhage. Incorporating new data to treatment algorithms may seem perplexing to stroke physicians, since treatment and imaging capabilities of each stroke center may dictate diverse treatment pathways. This narrative review will summarize current data that will assist clinicians in the selection of those late presenters that will most likely benefit from acute reperfusion therapies. Different treatment algorithms are provided according to available neuroimaging and endovascular treatment capabilities.


Biomolecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 347
Author(s):  
Zsuzsa Bagoly ◽  
Barbara Baráth ◽  
Rita Orbán-Kálmándi ◽  
István Szegedi ◽  
Réka Bogáti ◽  
...  

Cross-linking of α2-plasmin inhibitor (α2-PI) to fibrin by activated factor XIII (FXIIIa) is essential for the inhibition of fibrinolysis. Little is known about the factors modifying α2-PI incorporation into the fibrin clot and whether the extent of incorporation has clinical consequences. Herein we calculated the extent of α2-PI incorporation by measuring α2-PI antigen levels from plasma and serum obtained after clotting the plasma by thrombin and Ca2+. The modifying effect of FXIII was studied by spiking of FXIII-A-deficient plasma with purified plasma FXIII. Fibrinogen, FXIII, α2-PI incorporation, in vitro clot-lysis, soluble fibroblast activation protein and α2-PI p.Arg6Trp polymorphism were measured from samples of 57 acute ischemic stroke patients obtained before thrombolysis and of 26 healthy controls. Increasing FXIII levels even at levels above the upper limit of normal increased α2-PI incorporation into the fibrin clot. α2-PI incorporation of controls and patients with good outcomes did not differ significantly (49.4 ± 4.6% vs. 47.4 ± 6.7%, p = 1.000), however it was significantly lower in patients suffering post-lysis intracranial hemorrhage (37.3 ± 14.0%, p = 0.004). In conclusion, increased FXIII levels resulted in elevated incorporation of α2-PI into fibrin clots. In stroke patients undergoing intravenous thrombolysis treatment, α2-PI incorporation shows an association with the outcome of therapy, particularly with thrombolysis-associated intracranial hemorrhage.


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