RESUMO
Mechanical thrombectomy (MT) is an effective treatment in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) due to emergent large-vessel occlusion in the anterior circulation. Occlusion of the anterior cerebral artery (ACA) affects up to 15% of these patients. Here we report a case of an elderly patient with an successful MT of an embolic A2-segment occlussion with the anatomic variation of a triplication. Triplication of ACA is a rare anatomical variation, and the occlusion could have been easily overlooked in case of not performing the CT-perfusion (CTP) sequences. As anatomical variations of the circle of Willis are present in most subjects, CTA alone might be limited in the acute setting, particularly for young residents performing the first view on call. This case highlights the importance of including CTP in the initial CT-diagnostic algorithm in AIS patients who are basically eligible for recanalization therapies, irrespective of inconspicuous initial findings in CTA.
RESUMO
Mechanical thrombectomy (MT) is an effective treatment in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) due to emergent large-vessel occlusion in the anterior circulation. Occlusion of the anterior cerebral artery (ACA) affects up to 15% of these patients. Here we report a case of an elderly patient with an successful MT of an embolic A2-segment occlussion with the anatomic variation of a triplication. Triplication of ACA is a rare anatomical variation, and the occlusion could have been easily overlooked in case of not performing the CT-perfusion (CTP) sequences. As anatomical variations of the circle of Willis are present in most subjects, CTA alone might be limited in the acute setting, particularly for young residents performing the first view on call. This case highlights the importance of including CTP in the initial CT-diagnostic algorithm in AIS patients who are basically eligible for recanalization therapies, irrespective of inconspicuous initial findings in CTA.
RESUMO
BackgroundStroke is reported as a consequence of SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, there is a lack of regarding comprehensive stroke phenotype and characteristics MethodsWe conducted a multinational observational study on features of consecutive acute ischemic stroke (AIS), intracranial hemorrhage (ICH), and cerebral venous or sinus thrombosis (CVST) among SARS-CoV-2 infected patients. We further investigated the association of demographics, clinical data, geographical regions, and countries health expenditure among AIS patients with the risk of large vessel occlusion (LVO), stroke severity as measured by National Institute of Health stroke scale (NIHSS), and stroke subtype as measured by the TOAST criteria. Additionally, we applied unsupervised machine learning algorithms to uncover possible similarities among stroke patients. ResultsAmong the 136 tertiary centers of 32 countries who participated in this study, 71 centers from 17 countries had at least one eligible stroke patient. Out of 432 patients included, 323(74.8%) had AIS, 91(21.1%) ICH, and 18(4.2%) CVST. Among 23 patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage, 16(69.5%) had no evidence of aneurysm. A total of 183(42.4%) patients were women, 104(24.1%) patients were younger than 55 years, and 105(24.4%) patients had no identifiable vascular risk factors. Among 380 patients who had known interval onset of the SARS-CoV-2 and stroke, 144(37.8%) presented to the hospital with chief complaints of stroke-related symptoms, with asymptomatic or undiagnosed SARS-CoV-2 infection. Among AIS patients 44.5% had LVO; 10% had small artery occlusion according to the TOAST criteria. We observed a lower median NIHSS (8[3-17], versus 11 [5-17]; p=0.02) and higher rate of mechanical thrombectomy (12.4% versus 2%; p<0.001) in countries with middle to high-health expenditure when compared to countries with lower health expenditure. The unsupervised machine learning identified 4 subgroups, with a relatively large group with no or limited comorbidities. ConclusionsWe observed a relatively high number of young, and asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infections among stroke patients. Traditional vascular risk factors were absent among a relatively large cohort of patients. Among hospitalized patients, the stroke severity was lower and rate of mechanical thrombectomy was higher among countries with middle to high-health expenditure.
RESUMO
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Current guidelines do not provide firm directions on atrial fibrillation (AF) screening after ischemic stroke (IS). We sought to investigate the association of implantable cardiac monitoring (ICM) duration with the yield of AF detection in IS patients. METHODS: We included studies reporting AF detection rates by ICM in IS patients with negative initial AF screening. We excluded studies reporting prolonged cardiac monitoring with devices other than ICM, not providing AF detection rates or monitoring duration, and reporting overlapping data for the same population. The random-effects model was used for all pooled estimates and meta-regression analyses. RESULTS: We included 28 studies (4,531 patients, mean age 65 years). In meta-regression analyses, the proportion of AF detection by ICM was independently associated with monitoring duration (coefficient=0.015; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.005 to 0.024) and mean patient age (coefficient=0.009; 95% CI, 0.003 to 0.015). No associations were detected with other patient characteristics, including IS subtype (cryptogenic vs. embolic stroke of undetermined source) or time from IS onset to CM implantation. In subgroup analyses, significant differences (P12 and ≤24 months: 26% [95% CI, 22% to 31%]; >24 months: 34% [95% CI, 29% to 39%]). CONCLUSIONS: Extended duration of ICM monitoring and increased patient age are factors that substantially increase AF detection in IS patients with initial negative AF screening.
