Extracranial ultrasound following mechanical thrombectomy in patients with acute stroke.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Mechanical thrombectomy (MT) is standard care for patients suffering from an ischemic stroke due to a large vessel occlusion. Immediate and follow-up transcranial ultrasound examinations after MT were shown to have a diagnostic benefit. However, it is unclear whether repeated extracranial ultrasound after MT has an additional diagnostic yield, that is, depicts new findings. METHODS: Retrospectively, from our prospective database we identified all patients after MT who presented for a follow-up examination between January 2017 and March 2020 and who had received an ultrasound examination after MT and at follow-up. Clinical data were extracted from our database. Ultrasound images of all patients were revisited to identify new findings at follow-up compared to examination after MT. RESULTS: Ninety-one patients were identified appropriate for further analysis, with a mean age of 67.8 ± 16 years. Median National Institute of Health Stroke Scale at admission was 11 ± 8.5 points. At baseline ultrasound, 18 patients (19.8%) had no atherosclerotic alterations and 73 patients (82.2%) had a plaque burden of ≥1 plaque. During follow-up, in 5 patients (5.5%) a pathological finding presented in first examination evolved dynamically, that is, normalized. Vessel status of all other patients was stable, especially, in no patient a new relevant pathological finding occurred. CONCLUSIONS: Although sonographic normalization of pathologic findings was observed, pathologic new findings were not detected during follow-up. This study provides first data for a discussion of the role of ultrasound in a structured stroke care after MT. However, larger studies are required to improve the understanding.