Synchronous cardiocerebral infarction in the era of endovascular therapy: which to treat first?

A cardiocerebral ischemic attack (CCI) or a concurrent acute ischemic stroke (AIS) and myocardial infarction (AMI) is a severe event with no clear recommendations for ideal management because of the rarity of the scenario. The narrow time window for treatment and complexity of the treatment decision puts immense pressure on the treating physician. We evaluated this challenging situation at our tertiary center. Using our prospective stroke database out of a total of 555 patients with acute ischemic stroke between 2009 and 2014, we identified five consecutive cases with CCI (incidence 0.009%). Demography, risk factor characteristics, vascular occlusions and treatment approach were recorded. Good functional outcome was defined by the modified Rankin scale (mRS) score of 0-2 points. Out of five patients, AIS was treated with endovascular treatment in three cases, while two were treated with intravenous thrombolysis only. One out of three patients had embolectomy of the brain performed prior to the coronary intervention, while the other two patients underwent coronary intervention first. One patient developed sudden cardiac arrest on day-2 and passed away. CCI is an uncommon and devastating clinical scenario, further research is needed for the ideal management strategy that provides the best outcomes. However, the rarity of the disease does not lend itself to the conduct of a trial easily. We have proposed a considered treatment algorithm based on the current literature and our experience.

Deep Cerebral Venous Thrombosis Treatment : Endovascular Case using Aspiration and Review of the Various Treatment Modalities.

BACKGROUND: Deep cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) is an uncommon condition with a high morbidity and mortality. The optimal treatment approach for deep CVT remains uncertain and due to its low prevalence, randomized trials are not feasible. We showcase a straight sinus thrombosis treated with a large bore aspiration and performed a meta-analysis of the available literature to characterize and evaluate the various treatment modalities for patients with deep CVT. METHODS: We conducted a systematic search in PubMed, EMBASE and Ovid Medline using appropriate keywords/MESH terms search strategy. All patients with thrombosis involving the deep venous sinuses were included if treatment records were available. Outcome measures included recanalization of the affected sinus, good functional outcome assessed by a modified Rankin scale (mRS) of 0-2 or reported independent functional outcomes, permanent neurological deficits, further hemorrhage and mortality. RESULTS: A total of 69 studies comprising 120 patients were included in the analysis. Anticoagulation was the most common treatment (85.8%), whilst local intrasinus thrombolysis was performed in 40.0% of the patients and mechanical endovascular modalities were employed in 20.0% of the patients. Recanalization of the occluded sinus was seen in 83.5% of the patients while 62.6% patients achieved good functional outcome. There was considerable morbidity with 60.7% having a permanent neurological deficit, 23.3% having further hemorrhage after admission and 18.6% mortality. In the cohort receiving anticoagulation, 65.3% achieved good outcome but intracranial hemorrhage at presentation was associated with poorer outcome, permanent deficits, further bleeding and mortality. CONCLUSION: Anticoagulation is an effective treatment strategy for deep CVT; however, patients with intracranial hemorrhage at presentation often have poorer outcomes and early endovascular strategies could be considered in this subgroup.