Three years' interventional neurology experience in Turkey with the Thrombite thrombectomy device in large vessel occlusion in the anterior circulation: safety, efficacy, and clinical outcome.

Introduction: While the Thrombite device differs from the Solitare stent with its Helical open-side structure feature, it shows great similarity with its other features. We assessed the Thrombite device's effectiveness and safety in this study. Materials and methods: The study was a retrospective analysis of patients who were included in the Turkish Interventional Neurology database and who had mechanical thrombectomy with the Thrombite device as the first choice between January 2020 and January 2023. The type of study is descriptive research. Result: Using the Thrombite thrombectomy device, 525 patients received treatment. The median baseline National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score was 13, the median initial Alberta Stroke Program Early Computed Tomography (ASPECT) score was 8, and the mean patient age was 68.6+11.7 years. Between the groin puncture and the successful recanalization, the median time was 34 minutes (interquartile range [IQR]: 15-45). 48.2% (modified treatment in cerebral infarction; mTICI) 2b/3% and 33.9% (mTICI 2c/3) were the first-pass recanalization rates. In the end, 87.7% of patients had effective recanalization (thrombolysis in cerebral infarction 2b/3). In the "first-pass" subgroup, the favorable functional result (modified Rankin Scale 0-2) was 51.8%, while it was 41.6% for the entire patient population. The rate of embolization into new territory/different territory were 2.1/0.1%. 23 patients (4.5%) had symptomatic hemorrhage. Conclusion: The Thrombite device showed a good safety profile and high overall successful recanalization rates in our experience.

Can C-reactive protein/albumin ratio be a prognostic factor in acute stroke patients undergoing mechanical thrombectomy?

INTRODUCTION: C-reactive protein (CRP) and albumin are markers synthesized by the liver and may reflect inflammatory responses. CRP/Albumin ratio (CAR) serves better to reflect the inflammatory state and therefore the prognosis. Worse prognosis is reported in previous studies when CAR rate on admission is high in patients with stroke, aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage, malignancy or patients followed in intensive care units. We aimed to investigate the relation of CAR with prognosis in mechanical thrombectomy performed acute stroke patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Stroke patients admitted to five different stroke centers between January 2021 and August 2022 undergoing mechanical thrombectomy were included and retrospectively analyzed. The CAR ratio was calculated as the ratio of CRP to albumin level in the venous blood samples. Primary outcome was the relation between CAR and functional outcome at 90 days determined by modified Rankin Scale (mRS). RESULTS: This study included 558 patients with a mean age of 66,5 ± 12.5 years (age range:18-89 years) best cutoff value of the CAR was 3.36, with 74.2 % sensitivity and 60.7 % specificity (Area under the curve: 0.774; 95 %CI: 0.693-0.794). There was no significant correlation between CAR rate and age, CAR rate and NIHSS on admission, and also between CAR rate and symptom recanalization (p > 0.05). CAR ratio in the mRS 3-6 group was statistically significantly higher (p < 0.001). In the multivariate analyses, CAR showed an association with 90-day mortality (odds ratio, 1.049; 95 % CI, 1.032-1.066) CONCLUSION: In acute ischemic stroke patients treated with mechanical thrombectomy, CAR may be one of the factors affecting poor clinical outcome and/or mortality in patients undergoing mechanical thrombectomy. Upcoming similar studies in this patient group may better clarify the prognostic role of CAR.

A Cross-Sectional Analysis of the Relationship among Adolescents' Perceived Social Support, Psychological State and Future Expectations among Turkish Students.

INTRODUCTION: Due to social and emotional changes alongside the cognitive and logical changes in adolescence, alterations occur in the adolescent's communication with family and friends in this period, and social support assumes greater importance. METHODS: From each of the two middle and high schools in the Ilkadim district of Samsun, a total 688 students were employed by a two-stage sampling method in this cross-sectional study. The data were collected from sociodemographic information, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) and Future Expectations Scale for Adolescents (FESA) questionnaires distributed under the supervision of guidance counselors in these schools between December 2014 and February 2015. The Mann- Whitney U test and Spearman's Rank Correlation were used for statistical analysis. The significance level was accepted as p<0.05 for all tests. RESULTS: In the study group, MSPSS Family subscale had a stronger correlational relationship with all the BSI subscales including global indices and also with total score of FESA and subscales with the exception of the Marriage and Family subscale than the other two MSPSS subscales. There were moderate negative correlation between scores of MSPSS and BSI, and a low-moderate positive correlation was observed between total MSPSS and FESA scores of adolescents. The results demonstrated that adolescents who exercise regularly and avoid smoking and alcohol have higher perceptions of social support. CONCLUSION: Perceived social support from family may be more effective than perceived social support from friends or a significant other in the development of psychological well-being and positive future expectations of Turkish adolescents.