Background Recent studies comparing the outcomes of wake-up stroke (WUS) and stroke while awake (SWA) patients reveal better outcomes among SWA patients, attributable in part to their higher rates of ...thrombolysis. Patients with WUS are largely excluded from therapy. Earlier analyses, conducted before the approval of alteplase for acute stroke, show the true divergence of natural histories between these 2 groups. Methods We analyzed 17,398 patients with ischemic stroke from the International Stroke Trial and compared both presentations and outcomes between the WUS and SWA groups. Severity was assessed by level of consciousness, Oxfordshire Community Stroke Project (OCSP) stroke classification, number of neurologic deficits, and predicted probability of dependency or death. Outcomes were assessed at day 14 and at 6 months. Outcome assessments were controlled for potential confounders. Results WUS represented 29.6% of all ischemic strokes. More severe OSCP stroke type (total anterior circulation syndrome) was less common in WUS. Although more patients with WUS were alert at presentation with a lower predicted probability of dependency, the 14-day mortality rates and rates of poor outcome at 6 months were similar between the 2 groups. Conclusions WUS patients comprise one quarter to one third of ischemic stroke patients. Despite their more benign presentations, they deteriorate to outcome rates similar to SWA. Although they are typically excluded from time-dependent acute interventions, patients with WUS may benefit from acute intervention to prevent this worsening natural history.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
To describe the feasibility and safety of transradial access (TRA) in the interventional management of acute ischemic stroke (AIS).
A retrospective review of the local institutional AIS ...interventional databases of three tertiary academic centers was performed and the use of TRA identified.
TRA was attempted in 15 (1.5%) of 1001 patients; it was used in 12 cases due to transfemoral access (TFA) failure and in 3 as the primary strategy. The mean age was 72.3±8.6 and 46% were male. Baseline National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score was 19.5±8.7, two patients (14%) received intravenous tissue plasminogen activator, and mean time from last known normal to intra-arterial therapy was 17.0±20.1 h. Five patients had anterior circulation occlusive disease and 10 had vertebrobasilar occlusions. TRA was effective in allowing clot engagement in 13 of 15 cases: one patient had a hypoplastic radial artery that precluded sheath advancement and one had chronic innominate artery occlusion that could not be crossed. Mean time to switch from TFA to TRA was 1.9±1.3 h and the mean time from radial puncture to reperfusion was 2.2±1.0 h. Modified Thrombolysis In Cerebral Infarction 2b-3 reperfusion via TRA was achieved in 9 of 15 patients (60%). No radial puncture site complications were noted. At 90 days, two patients (13%) had a good clinical outcome and seven (50%) had died.
Failure of TFA in the endovascular treatment of AIS is uncommon but leads to unacceptable delays in reperfusion and poor outcomes. Standardization of benchmarks for access switch could serve as a guide for neurointerventionalists. TRA is a valid approach for the endovascular treatment of AIS.
Cardiac troponin I (cTI) release occurs frequently after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) and has been associated with a neurogenic form of myocardial injury. The prognostic significance and clinical ...impact of these elevations remain poorly defined.
We studied 253 SAH patients who underwent serial cTI measurements for clinical or ECG signs of potential cardiac injury. These patients were drawn from an inception cohort of 441 subjects enrolled in the Columbia University SAH Outcomes Project between November 1998 and August 2002. Peak cTI levels were divided into quartiles or classified as undetectable. Adverse in-hospital events were prospectively recorded, and outcome at 3 months was assessed with the modified Rankin Scale. Admission predictors of cTI elevation included poor clinical grade, intraventricular hemorrhage, loss of consciousness at ictus, global cerebral edema, and a composite score of physiological derangement (all P< or =0.01). Peak cTI level was associated with an increased risk of echocardiographic left ventricular dysfunction (odds ratio OR, 1.3 per quintile; 95% CI, 1.0 to 1.7; P=0.03), pulmonary edema (OR, 2.1 per quintile; 95% CI, 1.6 to 2.7; P<0.001), hypotension requiring pressors (OR, 1.9 per quintile; 95% CI, 1.5 to 2.3; P<0.001), and delayed cerebral ischemia from vasospasm (OR, 1.3 per quintile; 95% CI, 1.07 to 1.7; P=0.01). Peak cTI levels were predictive of death or severe disability at discharge after controlling for age, clinical grade, and aneurysm size (adjusted OR, 1.4 per quintile; 95% CI, 1.1 to 1.9; P=0.02), but this association was no longer significant at 3 months.
cTI elevation after SAH is associated with an increased risk of cardiopulmonary complications, delayed cerebral ischemia, and death or poor functional outcome at discharge.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
The effect of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic on performance of neuroendovascular procedures has not been quantified.
METHODS
We performed an audit of ...performance of neuroendovascular procedures at 18 institutions (seven countries) for two periods; January‐April 2019 and 2020, to identify changes in various core procedures. We divided the region where the hospital was located based on the median value of total number of COVID‐19 cases per 100,00 population‐into high and low prevalent regions.
RESULTS
Between 2019 and 2020, there was a reduction in number of cerebral angiograms (30.9% reduction), mechanical thrombectomy (8% reduction), carotid artery stent placement for symptomatic (22.7% reduction) and asymptomatic (43.4% reduction) stenoses, intracranial angioplasty and/or stent placement (45% reduction), and endovascular treatment of unruptured intracranial aneurysms (44.6% reduction) and ruptured (22.9% reduction) and unruptured brain arteriovenous malformations (66.4% reduction). There was an increase in the treatment of ruptured intracranial aneurysms (10% increase) and other neuroendovascular procedures (34.9% increase). There was no relationship between procedural volume change and intuitional location in high or low COVID‐19 prevalent regions. The procedural volume reduction was mainly observed in March‐April 2020.
CONCLUSIONS
We provided an international multicenter view of changes in neuroendovascular practices to better understand the gaps in provision of care and identify individual procedures, which are susceptible to change.
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FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
OBJECTIVE:To compare the efficacy of a novel water-circulating surface cooling system with conventional measures for treating fever in neuro-intensive care unit patients.
DESIGN:Prospective, ...unblinded, randomized controlled trial.
SETTING:Neurologic intensive care unit in an urban teaching hospital.
PATIENTS:Forty-seven patients, the majority of whom were mechanically ventilated and sedated, with fever ≥38.3°C for >2 consecutive hours after receiving 650 mg of acetaminophen.
INTERVENTIONS:Subjects were randomly assigned to 24 hrs of treatment with a conventional water-circulating cooling blanket placed over the patient (Cincinnati SubZero, Cincinnati OH) or the Arctic Sun Temperature Management System (Medivance, Louisville CO), which employs hydrogel-coated water-circulating energy transfer pads applied directly to the trunk and thighs.
MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS:Diagnoses included subarachnoid hemorrhage (60%), cerebral infarction (23%), intracerebral hemorrhage (11%), and traumatic brain injury (4%). The groups were matched in terms of baseline variables, although mean temperature was slightly higher at baseline in the Arctic Sun group (38.8 vs. 38.3°C, p = .046). Compared with patients treated with the SubZero blanket (n = 24), Arctic Sun-treated patients (n = 23) experienced a 75% reduction in fever burden (median 4.1 vs. 16.1 C°-hrs, p = .001). Arctic Sun-treated patients also spent less percent time febrile (T ≥38.3°C, 8% vs. 42%, p < .001), spent more percent time normothermic (T ≤37.2°C, 59% vs. 3%, p < .001), and attained normothermia faster than the SubZero group median (2.4 vs. 8.9 hrs, p = .008). Shivering occurred more frequently in the Arctic Sun group (39% vs. 8%, p = .013).
CONCLUSION:The Arctic Sun Temperature Management System is superior to conventional cooling-blanket therapy for controlling fever in critically ill neurologic patients.
Introduction Tandem lesions (TLs) are present in up to 15% of patients with stroke due to acute large vessel occlusions.(1) Nevertheless, published research on endovascular treatment outcomes in this ...population is scarce. Although TLs are most commonly of atherosclerotic etiology, some patients present with dissection of the ICA.(2, 3) In this study, we compared the clinical outcomes of TL patients with the two etiologies. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed on a multicenter cohort of patients with TLs who underwent endovascular treatment. The patients were categorized into two groups according to the etiology of the ICA lesion: atherosclerosis and dissection. Patients were matched by baseline characteristics. Clinical outcomes, including recanalization success, functional independence and hemorrhagic events were assessed with multivariable analyses. Results Of 691 patients from the database, 526 met the inclusion criteria of this study. 467 (88.8%) patients presented with atherosclerosis of the ICA, and 59 (11.2%) patients presented dissection. Univariable differences were found in median age (69 y. IQR 61 ‐ 76 vs. 52 y. IQR 44 ‐ 63, p<.001), rates of hypertension (74.5% vs. 52.5%, p<0.001), hyperlipidemia (49.2% vs. 27.1%, p=.001), diabetes (29.8% vs. 15.3%, p=.019), and prior antiplatelets use (36.8% vs. 22.8%, p=.037). After matching and adjusting for confounders, we did not find differences between both groups for the main outcomes: Successful reperfusion (89.1% vs. 79.7%, aOR 0.46, 95% CI 0.20 – 1.08, p=.074), mRS 0‐2 at 90 days (47.5% vs. 47.4%, aOR 0.80, 95% CI 0.44 – 1.48, p=.381), and sICH (4.3% vs. 6.8%, aOR 0.96, 95% CI 0.17 – 5.58, p=0.965). Similarly, no differences were found for the secondary outcomes: Excellent recanalization (51.1% vs. 40.7%, aOR 0.86, 95% CI 0.46 – 1.60, p=.632), early neurological improvement (41% vs. 36.2%, aOR 0.76, 95% CI 0.40 – 1.43, p=.392), parenchymal hematoma type 2 (7.8% vs. 8.5%, aOR 0.59, 95% CI 0.17 – 2.03, p=.400), mortality at 90 days (17.4% vs. 14%, aOR 1.17, 95% CI 0.49 – 2.81, p=.726), and intrahospital mortality (9.6% vs. 8.6%, aOR 0.91, 95% CI 0.31 – 2.62, p=.859). Conclusion In our cohort, patients with lesions of atherosclerotic etiology achieved higher rates of successful and excellent recanalization, but the effect disappeared when matching the groups and adjusting for confounders. The results of this study show that the etiology of the ICA lesion does not affect the clinical outcomes of endovascular treatment in tandem lesions.
Introduction Tandem Lesions (TLs) pose unique challenges in the endovascular management of acute ischemic stroke.(1) The absence of anterograde blood flow in the carotid occluded segment may limit ...the effectiveness of endovascular interventions, resulting in delayed reperfusion or suboptimal recanalization.(2,3) Thus, the presence of unpaired blood flow through the ICA in the context of TLs is believed to exacerbate the extension of ischemic lesions. (4,5) This study compared the clinical and procedural outcomes of patients with TLs and extracranial internal carotid artery occlusion versus those with stenosis. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed on a multicenter cohort of patients with TLs who underwent endovascular treatment. The patients were categorized into two groups: those with extracranial ICA stenosis and those with occlusion. Clinical outcomes, including functional independence, hemorrhagic events, and procedural time metrics including puncture to reperfusion time were assessed. Sensitivity analyses were conducted to evaluate these differences segregating patients according to varying degrees of stenosis, and in pre‐specified subgroups. Results A total of 513 patients with TLs were included in the study. 281 (54.8%) presented with ICA occlusion, and 232 (45.2%) presented stenosis >=70% (Table 1). The comparison between the stenosis and occlusion groups revealed no significant differences in the main outcomes, including mTICI 2c‐3 (47.5% vs. 50.6%, aOR 1.07, 95% CI 0.70‐1.64, p=.751) (Figure 1), mRS 0‐2 at 90 days (43.6% vs. 48.9%, aOR 0.79, 95% CI 0.52‐1.20, p=.271), sICH rates (4.7% vs. 5.6%, aOR 0.72, 95% CI 0.31‐1.71, p=.458), and puncture to reperfusion time (58 40‐80.5 vs. 52.5 35.2‐80, ratio 1.04, 95% CI 0.88‐1.23, p=.64). Similar analyses performed comparing different degrees of stenosis and occlusion, and in patients treated with the antegrade approach only, did not show significant differences either. Conclusion Our findings indicate that although more severe degrees of stenosis or occlusion of the ICA prolong the time from puncture to reperfusion, no significant differences in clinical outcomes exist. The clinical implications of these findings need to be further evaluated to fully comprehend the specific needs of patients affected by TLs.
Background Procedural intravenous cangrelor has been proposed as an effective platelet inhibition strategy for stenting in acute ischemic stroke. We aimed to compare the safety profile of low‐dose ...intravenous cangrelor versus dual oral antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) loading in patients with acute cervical tandem lesions. Methods We retrospectively identified cases from an international multicenter cohort who underwent intraprocedural administration of intravenous cangrelor (15 μg/kg followed by an infusion of 2 μg/kg per min) or DAPT loading during acute tandem lesions intervention. Safety outcomes included rates of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage, parenchymal hematoma type 2, petechial hemorrhage, and in‐stent thrombosis. Inverse probability of treatment weighting matching was used to reduce confounding. Results From 691 patients, we included 195 patients, 30 of whom received intravenous cangrelor and 165 DAPT. The DAPT regimens were aspirin+clopidogrel (93.3%) or aspirin+ticagrelor (6.6%). After inverse probability of treatment weighting, the patients treated with cangrelor were not at greater odds of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (odds ratio OR, 1.30 95% CI, 0.09–17.3; P =0.837), symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage–parenchymal hematoma type 2 (OR, 0.54 95% CI, 0.05–4.98; P =0.589), or petechial hemorrhage (OR, 1.11 95% CI, 0.38–3.28; P =0.836). Similarly, the rate of in‐stent thrombosis was not significantly different between the 2 groups (1.8% versus 0%; P =0.911). Conclusion Cangrelor at the half dose of the myocardial infarction protocol showed a similar safety profile compared with the commonly used DAPT loading protocols in patients with acute tandem lesions. Further studies with larger samples are warranted to elucidate the safety of antiplatelet therapy in tandem lesions.
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