Rescue intracranial stenting in acute ischemic stroke: a preliminary Vietnamese study.

OBJECTIVE: In cases of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) caused by intracranial large vessel occlusion, rescue intracranial stenting (RIS) has recently emerged as a treatment option for achieving recanalization when mechanical thrombectomy (MT) fails. However, few studies to date have reported on the beneficial outcomes of RIS. Our goal was to analyze whether RIS use can improve prognosis in patients 3 months post-treatment. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on a prospective cohort of patients with AIS treated with RIS at Can Tho S.I.S General Hospital. The study inclusion criteria were evidence of intracranial large vessel occlusion, absence of intracranial hemorrhage (ICH), and severe stenosis or reocclusion after MT. Patients with tandem occlusions, failure to follow up after discharge, or severe or fatal illness concomitant with AIS were excluded from the study. The primary outcome was the "non-poor" prognosis status rate at 3 months after RIS and post-procedural symptomatic ICH (sICH). RESULTS: The post-treatment outcomes of 85 eligible patients who received RIS between August 2019 and May 2021 were assessed. Of the 85 included patients, 82 (96.5%) achieved successful recanalization, and 4 (4.7%) experienced sICH. At 3-months post-treatment, 47 (55.3%) patients had "non-poor" outcomes, whereas 35 (41.2%) had good outcomes. The use of dual antiplatelet therapy was associated with new infarcts (relative risk [RR]: 0.1; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.01-0.7) and sICH occurrence (RR: 0.1; 95% CI: 0.01-0.9). CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that despite the occurrence of post-procedural sICH in a small proportion of cases, RIS could serve as a useful alternative or additional treatment in the event of MT failure.

Rescue stenting after the failure of intravenous thrombolysis and bridging thrombolysis: an initial Vietnamese report.

OBJECTIVE: Intravenous (IV) recombinant tissue plasminogen activator is the standard of care for patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) who present to the hospital within 4.5 hours of symptom onset. However, IV thrombolysis, even bridging thrombolysis (combining intravenous thrombolysis and mechanical thrombectomy) has limited efficacy among patients who had occlusive lesions associated with high-grade arterial stenosis requiring revascularization to improve neurological deficits. We evaluated whether rescue stenting results in good outcomes among patients after the failure of intravenous thrombolysis and bridging thrombolysis. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed patients with AIS who underwent rescue stenting for large vessel occlusion with severe atherosclerotic stenosis between May 2020 and August 2022 at Can Tho S.I.S General Hospital. Primary outcomes included the incidence of hemorrhagic transformation and the rate of good outcomes (modified Rankin Scale < 3) at 3-month follow-up. RESULTS: We identified 13 patients who received rescue stenting after the failure of IV alteplase and bridging thrombolysis, but only 11 patients met the inclusion criteria. All patients experienced successful recanalization, and 1 (9.1%) patient experienced new infarcts. Of these 11 patients, 10 (90.9%) had good outcomes 3 months after rescue stenting. Additionally, a loading dose of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) applied concurrently with IV alteplase improved the recanalization rate for large target arteries but had no significant effect on the incidence of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage. CONCLUSIONS: Rescue stenting appears to represent an additional therapeutic option in cases that fail to resolve with IV alteplase, which may improve clinical outcomes.