Previous studies of intra-arterial thrombolysis for acute ischemic stroke
To date, three randomized studies evaluating the effect of intra-arterial thrombolysis on recanalization and outcome after ischemic stroke have been conducted. Patients with acute ischemic stroke and onset of symptoms within ± hours were evaluated in the PROACT I and II trials. In PROACT I, patients with TIMI Grade 0 or 1 occlusion of the M1 or M2segments of the MCA were randomized 2:1 to receive prourokinase (6 mg) or placebo over the course of 120 minutes into the thrombus (4). Of 105 patients who underwent angiography, 36 patients were randomized. All patients received intravenously administered heparin for 4 hours. The first 16patients received a 100-U/kg bolus, then a 100-U/h infusion during 4 hours. The remaining patients received a 4000-Ubolus intravenously, then a 500-U/h infusion. Partial or complete recanalization was observed in 15 of 36 patients treated with prourokinase and in 2 of 14 placebo-treated patients. Intracerebral hemorrhage was observed in 11 of the prourokinase-treated patients and 1 placebo-treated patient. In the PROACT II trial, 180 patients with documented angiographic occlusion of the MCA were randomized to receive either 9 mg of intra-arterial prourokinase and heparin or heparin alone (5). All patients received a 2000-U bolus, then a500-U/h infusion of heparin for 4 hours. A total of 121 patients received 9 mg of prourokinase during 2 hours. The recanalization rate was 66% in the prourokinase group and18% in the group treated with heparin alone. The rate of intracerebral hemorrhage associated with neurological deterioration was 10% in the prourokinase group and 2% in the heparin-only group. Forty percent of the patients treated with prourokinase had a modified Rankin score of 2 or less, compared with 25% in the control group. The Emergency Management of Stroke Bridging Trial evaluated the use of intravenous and intra-arterial alteplase in patients with acute ischemic stroke (9). According to the study protocol, patients received a 0.6-mg/kg dose of intravenously administered alteplase or placebo. After a catheter was placed intra-arterially in the proximity of the thrombus, 2 mg of alteplase was infused, then a 10-mg/h infusion. The maximum intra-arterial dose administered was 20 mg. Hemorrhagic infarction was observed on CT scan in 8 of the 35 patients (3 were symptomatic). A higher rate of recanalization was observed in patients who received higher doses of alteplase. The mean overall(intravenous and intra-arterial) dose of alteplase was 35.6mg in patients with final TIMI Grade 1 and 56.7 mg of dose with final TIMI Grade 3.A direct comparison of the results from our study with those from previous studies is not possible because of important differences in patient selection. An indirect comparison with PROACT II (5) suggests a higher rate of recanalization associated with the use of intra-arterially administered reteplase with or without angioplasty (TIMI Grade $2 in 94%)than with intra-arterial prourokinase without angioplasty(TIMI Grade $2 in 66%). This difference was observed despite the fact that PROACT II included only patients with either TIMI Grade 0 or 1 occlusion of the M1 or M2 division of the MCA. In our series, a large proportion (eight patients) displayed TIMI Grade 0 occlusion of the ICA, which is associated with a lower rate of recanalization than MCA occlusion (16).The overall rate of intracranial hemorrhage in our series was 25%. In PROACT II, the rate of any type of intracranial hemorrhage within the first 10 days was 68%. Intracranial hemorrhages with neurological deterioration (four-point or more increase in NIHSS score) occurred in 10% of 108 patients treated with prourokinase. We observed neurological deterioration (one-point or more increase in NIHSS score) associated with intracranial hemorrhage in 1 (6%) of the 16 patients treated. Overall, the rates of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhages were comparable, despite the more sensitive definition of deterioration in our study. The mortality rate was high (56%) in our study but does not seem to be directly related to intra-arterial treatment because most deaths (seven of nine) in our series were attributable to massive cerebral edema associated with infarction. In one patient (Patient 5), intracerebral hemorrhage contributed to the mass effect, in addition to infarction-related cerebraledema. In PROACT II, the 90-day mortality rate for prourokinase-treated patients was 25%. The higher mortality rate in our series may be related to the severity of initial deficits and other associated comorbid conditions. The median initial NIHSS score in our patients was 20 (range, 10–26),compared with 17 (range, 5–27) in the prourokinase-treated patients. Patients undergoing any surgical procedures within30 days of stroke onset were excluded in PROACT II but included in our series. Our study focused on determining immediate outcome after the use of intra-arterially administered reteplase. Therefore, no definite conclusions can be drawn with respect to long-term functional outcome.