An Older Thrombus Delays Reperfusion after Mechanical Thrombectomy for Ischemic Stroke.

BACKGROUND: Thrombosis is a dynamic process, and a thrombus undergoes physical and biochemical changes that may alter its response to reperfusion therapy. This study assessed whether thrombus age influenced reperfusion quality and outcomes after mechanical thrombectomy for cerebral embolism. METHODS: We retrospectively evaluated 185 stroke patients and thrombi that were collected during mechanical thrombectomy at three stroke centers. Thrombi were pathologically classified as fresh or older based on their granulocytes' nuclear morphology and organization. Thrombus components were quantified, and the extent of NETosis (the process of neutrophil extracellular trap formation) was assessed using the density of citrullinated histone H3-positive cells. Baseline patient characteristics, thrombus features, endovascular procedures, and functional outcomes were compared according to thrombus age. RESULTS: Fresh thrombi were acquired from 43 patients, and older thrombi were acquired from 142 patients. Older thrombi had a lower erythrocyte content (p < 0.001) and higher extent of NETosis (p = 0.006). Restricted mean survival time analysis revealed that older thrombi were associated with longer puncture-to-reperfusion times (difference: 15.6 minutes longer for older thrombi, p = 0.002). This association remained significant even after adjustment for erythrocyte content and the extent of NETosis (adjusted difference: 10.8 minutes, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.6-21.1 minutes, p = 0.039). Compared with fresh thrombi, older thrombi required more device passes before reperfusion (p < 0.001) and were associated with poorer functional outcomes (adjusted common odds ratio: 0.49; 95% CI: 0.24-0.99). CONCLUSION: An older thrombus delays reperfusion after mechanical thrombectomy for ischemic stroke. Adding therapies targeting thrombus maturation may improve the efficacy of mechanical thrombectomy.

Caracterización de pacientes con enfermedad cerebrovascular isquémica aguda / Characterization of acute ischemic cerebrovascular disease patientscerebrovascular disease patient

Introducción: dada la alta mortalidad asociada con la enfermedad cerebrovascular, es necesario conocer las características clínicas, factores de riesgo, causas del evento, tiempos de atención y tratamiento de los pacientes para implementar medidas que mejoren la detección y su tratamiento. Objetivo: caracterizar a los pacientes adultos hospitalizados con diagnóstico de enfermedad cerebrovascular isquémica atendidos en el Hospital de San José de Bogotá entre el 1 de junio de 2017 y 31 de mayo de 2018. Metodología: estudio descriptivo de corte transversal. Se incluyeron mayores de 18 años con diagnóstico de enfermedad cerebrovascular isquémica. La información se recolectó de las historias clínicas y se empleó estadística descriptiva para analizar los datos. Resultados: se incluyeron 160 pacientes. El tiempo de evolución tuvo una mediana de 9.9 horas, 85% de ellos ingresaron sin alteración de la conciencia y severidad leve. El tiempo puerta a imagen tuvo una mediana de 36 minutos y el de puerta a trombólisis de 72.5 minutos. Se realizaron neuroimágenes en la primera hora de ingreso a 65%, procedimientos de recanalización endovenosa a 13%, de arritmia cardíaca a 96% y de vasos carotídeos a 93%; 82.4% recibió terapia antiagregante y 76% lograron una marcha superior a 10 metros en el momento del egreso. Discusión y conclusiones: se requiere la realización de mejorías en los tiempos de atención para alcanzar las pautas establecidas en las guías internacionales actuales.

Introduction: due to the high mortality rates associated with cerebrovascular disease, knowledge on its clinical characteristics, risk factors, possible causes, time to initial care and treatment is required in order to implement measures to improve detection and treatment. Objective: to characterize adult patients admitted to Hospital de San José of Bogotá diagnosed with ischemic cerebrovascular disease between June 1 2017 and May 31 2018. Methodology: a descriptive cross-sectional study. Patients older than 18 years diagnosed with cerebrovascular disease were included. Relevant data was collected from clinical records and descriptive statistics were used for data analysis. Results: 160 patients were included. The median progression was 9.9 hours, 85% of patients were admitted presenting no alteration of consciousness and mild severity. The median door-to- imaging time was 36 minutes and door-to-thrombolytic therapy 72.5 minutes. Sixty-five percent of patients received neuroimaging within the first hour of admission, endovenous recanalization procedures were conducted in 13%; of cardiac arrhythmias to 96% and of carotid vessels to 93 %; 82.4% received antiplatelet therapy and 76% were able to walk more than 10 meters at dismissal. Discussion and Conclusions: reducing time until initial medical care is required to meet the currently established international guidelines

Áreas de hiperdensidad después de la trombectomía intraarterial mecánica en el ictus isquémico agudo / Areas of hyperdensity following a mechanical intraarterial thrombectomy in acute ischaemic stroke

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Pulmonary embolism and stroke associated with mechanical thrombectomy / Embolia pulmonar e AVC isquêmico associado à trombectomia mecânica

Mechanical thrombectomy offers the advantage of rapid removal of venous thrombi. It allows venous obstructions to be removed and requires shorter duration of infusion of thrombolytic agents. However, aspiration of thrombi can lead to complications, particularly pulmonary embolism and hemolysis. The validity of using vena cava filters during thrombectomy in order to avoid embolism has not yet been established. The authors report a case of massive pulmonary embolism associated with ischemic stroke in a patient with a hitherto undiagnosed patent foramen ovale. The patient developed respiratory failure and neurological deficit after thrombectomy. This case raise questions about the value of the thrombectomy for the treatment of proximal vein thrombosis due to the risks of this procedure. The authors also discuss the need for vena cava filters and ruling out a patent foramen ovale in patients undergoing thrombectomy...

A trombectomia mecânica tem a vantagem de levar à rápida remoção dos trombos. Permite a desobstrução venosa e a redução do tempo de infusão de trombolíticos. A aspiração dos trombos pode levar a complicações, principalmente embolia pulmonar e hemólise. Algo que não está definido é a validade do uso de filtros de veia cava durante a trombectomia, com o objetivo de evitar a TEP maciça. Os autores relatam um caso de embolia pulmonar maciça associada a AVC isquêmico, em uma paciente que apresentava forame oval patente. Não havia o diagnóstico prévio da PFO. A paciente evoluiu com insuficiência respiratória e déficit neurológico logo após a trombectomia. Neste caso, questiona-se o valor da trombectomia para o tratamento da trombose venosa proximal, devido aos riscos deste procedimento. Os autores discutem sobre a necessidade de filtro de veia cava e sobre a pesquisa de forame oval nos pacientes que serão submetidos à trombectomia...

Bloqueo ciático continuo con catéter estimulador guiado mediante ecografía para tratamiento del miembro fantasma doloroso / Ultrasound-guided continuous sciatic nerve block with stimulating catheter for the treatment of phantom limb pain

Los bloqueos nerviosos periféricos pueden ser una alternativa a la analgesia intravenosa y epidural en el tratamiento del miembro fantasma doloroso. La dificultad en la localización del nervio ciático mediante neuroestimulación en pacientes con arteriopatía periférica y neuropatía puede verse aumentada por el hecho de presentar una amputación del miembro inferior, que imposibilita la observación de una respuesta motora en el pie coincidiendo con la localización del nervio. En estos casos, la ecografía puede convertirse en una técnica de localización nerviosa determinante del éxito de la analgesia yaqué permite la identificación del nervio, así como la visualización en tiempo real de la posición relativa de la aguja y catéter respecto al nervio y la difusión del anestésico local administrado. Se presenta el caso de un paciente con miembro fantasma doloroso resistente al tratamiento convencional que se controló con un bloqueo ciático continuo con catéter estimulador guiado con ecografía (AU)

Peripheral nerve blocks can be an alternative to intravenous and epidural analgesia in the treatment of phantom limb pain. The difficulty of localizing the sciatic nerve through neurostimulation in patients with peripheral arteriopathy and neuropathy can eincreased by lower limb amputation, making it impossible to observe a motor response in the foot coinciding with localization of the nerve. In these cases, ultrasonography can become a technique for nerve localization and determine the success of analgesic strategy, since it allows nerve identification, as well as visualization in real time of the relative position of the needle and catheter with respect to the nerve and the diffusion of the local anesthetic administered. We report the case of a patient with phantom limb pain refractory to conventional treatment, in whom pain control was achieved by ultrasound-guided continuous sciatic block with stimulating catheter (AU)