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BackgroundThe influence of cerebral microbleeds (CMBs) on post-thrombolytic hemorrhagic transformation (HT) in patients with acute ischemic stroke remains controversial.ObjectiveTo investigate the association of CMBs with HT and clinical outcomes among patients with large-vessel occlusion strokes treated with mechanical thrombectomy.MethodsWe analyzed patients with acute stroke treated with Merci Retriever, Penumbra system or stent-retriever devices. CMBs were identified on pretreatment T2-weighted, gradient-recall echo MRI. We analyzed the association of the presence, burden, and distribution of CMBs with HT, procedural complications, in-hospital mortality, and clinical outcome.ResultsCMBs were detected in 37 (18.0%) of 206 patients. Seventy-three foci of microbleeds were identified. Fourteen patients (6.8%) had ≥2 CMBs, only 1 patient had ≥5 CMBs. Strictly lobar CMBs were found in 12 patients, strictly deep CMBs in 12 patients, strictly infratentorial CMBs in 2 patients, and mixed CMBs in 11 patients. There were no significant differences between patients with CMBs and those without CMBs in the rates of overall HT (37.8% vs 45.6%), parenchymal hematoma (16.2% vs 19.5%), procedure-related vessel perforation (5.4% vs 7.1%), in-hospital mortality (16.2% vs 18.3%), and modified Rankin Scale score 0-3 at discharge. CMBs were not independently associated with HT or in-hospital mortality in patients treated with either thrombectomy or intravenous thrombolysis followed by thrombectomy.ConclusionsPatients with CMBs are not at increased risk for HT and mortality following mechanical thrombectomy for acute stroke. Excluding such patients from mechanical thrombectomy is unwarranted. The risk of HT in patients with ≥5 CMBs requires further study.

The interval appearance of cerebral microbleeds (CMBs) after endovascular treatment has never been described. We investigated the frequency and predictors of new CMBs that developed shortly after mechanical thrombectomy for acute ischemic stroke, and its impact on clinical outcome.We retrospectively analyzed patients with large-vessel occlusion strokes treated with Merci Retriever, Penumbra System, or stent-retriever devices. Serial T2*-weighted gradient-recall echo (GRE) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) before and 48 h after endovascular thrombectomy were assessed to identify new CMBs. We examined independent factors associated with new CMBs after mechanical thrombectomy. We analyzed the association of the presence, burden, and distribution of new CMBs with clinical outcome.A total of 187 consecutive patients with serial GRE were enrolled in this study. CMBs were evident in 36 (19.3%) patients before mechanical thrombectomy. New CMBs occurred in 41 (21.9%) patients after mechanical thrombectomy. Of the 68 new CMBs, 45 appeared in the lobar location, 18 in the deep location and 5 in the infratentorial location. The presence of baseline CMBs was associated with new CMBs after mechanical thrombectomy (OR 5.38; 95% CI 2.13-13.59; P < 0.001), no matter whether the patients were treated primarily with mechanical thrombectomy or with intravenous thrombolysis followed by mechanical thrombectomy. Patients with new CMBs did not have increased rates of hemorrhagic transformation, in-hospital mortality, and modified Rankin Scale score 4 to 6 at discharge.New CMBs are common after mechanical thrombectomy in one-fifth of patients with acute ischemic stroke. Baseline CMBs before mechanical thrombectomy predicts the development of new CMBs. New CMBs after mechanical thrombectomy do not influence clinical outcome.

Background and purposeHigh revascularization rates in large-vessel occlusion strokes treated by mechanical thrombectomy are not always associated with good clinical outcomes. We evaluated predictors of functional dependence despite successful revascularization among patients with acute ischemic stroke treated with thrombectomy.MethodsWe analyzed the pooled data from the Multi Mechanical Embolus Removal in Cerebral Ischemia (MERCI), Thrombectomy Revascularization of Large Vessel Occlusions in Acute Ischemic Stroke (TREVO), and TREVO 2 trials. Successful revascularization was defined as thrombolysis in cerebral infarction score 2b or 3. Functional dependence was defined as a score of 3 to 6 on the modified Rankin Scale at 3 months. We assessed relationship of demographic, clinical, angiographic characteristics, and hemorrhage with functional dependence despite successful revascularization.ResultsTwo hundred and twenty-eight patients with successful revascularization had clinical outcome follow-up. The rates of functional dependence with endovascular success were 48.6% for Trevo thrombectomy and 58.0% for Merci thrombectomy. Age (odds ratio, 1.04; 95% confidence interval, 1.02-1.06 per 1-year increase), National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score (odds ratio, 1.08; 95% confidence interval, 1.02-1.15 per 1-point increase), and symptom onset to endovascular treatment time (odds ratio, 1.11; 95% confidence interval, 1.01-1.22 per 30-minute delay) were predictors of functional dependence despite successful revascularization. Symptom onset to reperfusion time beyond 5 hours was associated with functional dependence. All subjects with symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage had functional dependence.ConclusionsOne half of patients with successful mechanical thrombectomy do not have good outcomes. Age, severe neurological deficits, and delayed endovascular treatment were associated with functional dependence despite successful revascularization. Our data support efforts to minimize delays to endovascular therapy in patients with acute ischemic stroke to improve outcomes.Clinical trial registration urlhttp://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT00318071, NCT01088672, and NCT01270867.

Background and Purpose: The impact of blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption can be detected by intraparenchymal hyperdense lesion on the computed tomography (CT) scan after endovascular stroke therapy. The purpose of this study was to determine whether early BBB disruption predicts intracranial hemorrhage and poor outcome in patients with acute ischemic stroke treated with mechanical thrombectomy.Methods: We analyzed patients with anterior circulation stroke treated with mechanical thrombectomy and identified BBB disruption on the noncontrast CT images immediately after endovascular treatment. Follow-up CT or magnetic resonance imaging scan was performed at 24 hours to assess intracranial hemorrhage. We dichotomized patients into those with moderate BBB disruption versus those with minor BBB disruption and no BBB disruption. We evaluated the association of moderate BBB disruption after mechanical thrombectomy with intracranial hemorrhage and clinical outcomes.Results: Moderate BBB disruption after mechanical thrombectomy was found in 56 of 210 patients (26.7%). Moderate BBB disruption was independently associated with higher rates of hemorrhagic transformation (OR 25.33; 95% CI 9.93-64.65; P < .001), parenchymal hematoma (OR 20.57; 95% CI 5.64-74.99; P < .001), and poor outcome at discharge (OR 2.35; 95% CI 1.09-5.07; P = .03). The association of BBB disruption with intracranial hemorrhage remained in patients with successful reperfusion after mechanical thrombectomy. The location of BBB disruption was not associated with intracranial hemorrhage and poor outcome.Conclusions: Moderate BBB disruption is common after mechanical thrombectomy in a quarter of patients with acute ischemic stroke and increases the risk of intracranial hemorrhage and poor outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Our goal was to assess the long-term anatomic and clinical outcomes in patients with giant middle cerebral artery (MCA) aneurysms treated by endovascular coil embolization alone or in combination with cerebral revascularization., Methods: One hundred twenty-six patients with giant intracranial aneurysms were endovascularly treated at the University of California, Los Angeles, between 1990 and 2007. Of these, 9 patients had partially thrombosed MCA aneurysms with incorporated branches. Five patients presented with symptoms of mass effect, 3 had seizures, 2 had episodes of brain ischemia, and 1 presented with acute subarachnoid hemorrhage., Results: Three wide-neck saccular aneurysms were almost completely coil occluded, leaving only small neck remnants that were intended to preserve the patency of incorporated MCA branches. The other 6 fusiform aneurysms were effectively treated by superficial temporal artery-MCA or occipital artery-MCA bypass, followed by complete coil occlusion of these aneurysms. Immediate angiograms and mid- or long-term neuroradiological imaging follow-up examinations revealed complete obliteration or near-complete occlusion (90%-99%) of the aneurysms in all 9 patients. Seven patients had a favorable long-term clinical outcome, and 1 patient died as a result of unrelated congestive heart failure. One patient required emergent surgical aneurysm thrombectomy because of inadvertent coil occlusion of the frontal opercular artery, which was not protected by the bypass, and the patient subsequently sustained a moderate neurological disability., Conclusion: Giant MCA aneurysms with branch incorporations and other unfavorable features such as intraluminal thrombus, mural calcification, and fusiform configuration can be effectively treated with a team approach, using coil embolization after protective surgical bypass. When aneurysms with MCA branches incorporated into the neck rather than the dome are treated by endovascular techniques alone, long-term angiographic follow-up is necessary to assess and further treat any significant remnant.

Objective: To observe the clinical and pathological characteristics of brain arteriovenous malformations (BAVM) embolized with the non-adhesive aqueous embolic agent Onyx and evaluate its application in comprehensive treatment of BAVM., Methods: Thirty-four patients underwent BAVM embolization using Onyx, and their clinical manifestations, architecture of the malformed vessels, emblization procedure, and complications associated with the procedures were recorded. The resected tissues after embolization with Onyx were observed with electron microscope, and the prognosis of the patients was estimated with modified Rankin Score (mRS)., Results: These patients included 21 male and 13 female patients with a mean age of 30.45-/+11.81 years and an estimated mean size of the nidus of 3.98-/+1.43 cm. The patients received a total of 52 endovascular treatment procedures with Onyx to embolize 86 feeding pedicals, which resulted in an average estimated size reduction of the nidus of (72.35-/+21.26)%. Complications associated with the procedure occurred in 7 patients, and 23 patients received surgical resection or radiosurgery after embolization. Follow-up of the patients for 6 months to 4 years showed that the mRS was below 3 in 32 cases and > or =3 in 2 cases. Vasodilatation, brain tissue edema surrounding the nidus, and inflammatory cell infiltration were observed in the resected tissues after embolization. In some major feeding pedicals, thrombus recanalization was observed after embolization with Onyx (diameter> or =3 mm)., Conclusion: Endovascular treatment of BAVM with Onyx can achieve high occlusion rate, enhance the safety of operation and radiosurgery, and improve the clinical prognosis of the patients.