Use of diagnostic subtraction angiography for ischemic stroke (US DUTCH study) Regional variation and time-trend among medicare beneficiaries.

Introduction: There are no guideline recommendations for DSA in the ischemic stroke work-up. We studied the rate of DSA in ischemic stroke, the recent time-trend, hospital variation and associated factors.

Methods: This is a retrospective cross-sectional study among Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries with ischemic stroke admitted between 2016 and 2020 in the United States.

Comparison of American and European Guideline Recommendations for Diagnostic Workup and Secondary Prevention of Ischemic Stroke and Transient Ischemic Attack.

Guidelines help to facilitate treatment decisions based on available evidence, and also to provide recommendations in areas of uncertainty. In this paper, we compare the recommendations for stroke workup and secondary prevention of ischemic stroke and transient ischemic attack of the American Heart Association (AHA)/American Stroke Association (ASA) with the European Stroke Organization (ESO) guidelines. The primary aim of this paper is to offer clinicians guidance by identifying areas where there is consensus and where consensus is lacking, in the absence or presence of high-level evidence.

Development and Validation of a Postprocedural Model to Predict Outcome After Endovascular Treatment for Ischemic Stroke.

Importance: Outcome prediction after endovascular treatment (EVT) for ischemic stroke is important to patients, family members, and physicians.

Objective: To develop and validate a model based on preprocedural and postprocedural characteristics to predict functional outcome for individual patients after EVT.

Design, Setting, And Participants: A prediction model was developed using individual patient data from 7 randomized clinical trials, performed between December 2010 and December 2014.

Admission systolic blood pressure and effect of endovascular treatment in patients with ischaemic stroke: an individual patient data meta-analysis.

Background: Current guidelines for ischaemic stroke treatment recommend a strict, but arbitrary, upper threshold of 185/110 mm Hg for blood pressure before endovascular thrombectomy. Nevertheless, whether admission blood pressure influences the effect of endovascular thrombectomy on outcome remains unknown. Our aim was to study the influence of admission systolic blood pressure (SBP) on functional outcome and on the effect of endovascular thrombectomy.

Endovascular treatment for isolated posterior cerebral artery occlusion stroke in the MR CLEAN registry.

Background: Endovascular treatment (EVT) is standard of care in anterior circulation large vessel occlusions. In posterior circulation occlusions, data on EVT in isolated posterior cerebral artery (PCA) occlusions are limited, although PCA occlusions can cause severe neurological deficit.

Objective: To describe in a prospective study the clinical manifestations, outcomes, and safety of EVT in isolated PCA occlusions.

Anti-NMDAR Encephalitis in the Netherlands, Focusing on Late-Onset Patients and Antibody Test Accuracy.

Background And Objectives: To describe the clinical features of anti-NMDAR encephalitis, emphasizing on late-onset patients and antibody test characteristics in serum and CSF.

Methods: Nationwide observational Dutch cohort study, in patients diagnosed with anti-NMDAR encephalitis between 2007 and 2019.

Results: One hundred twenty-six patients with anti-NMDAR encephalitis were included with a median age of 24 years (range 1-86 years).

Prediction of Outcome and Endovascular Treatment Benefit: Validation and Update of the MR PREDICTS Decision Tool.

Background And Purpose: Benefit of early endovascular treatment (EVT) for ischemic stroke varies considerably among patients. The MR PREDICTS decision tool, derived from MR CLEAN (Multicenter Randomized Clinical Trial of Endovascular Treatment for Acute Ischemic Stroke in the Netherlands), predicts outcome and treatment benefit based on baseline characteristics. Our aim was to externally validate and update MR PREDICTS with data from international trials and daily clinical practice.

Endovascular treatment in anterior circulation stroke beyond 6.5 hours after onset or time last seen well: results from the MR CLEAN Registry.

Background: Randomised controlled trials with perfusion selection have shown benefit of endovascular treatment (EVT) for ischaemic stroke between 6 and 24 hours after symptom onset or time last seen well. However, outcomes after EVT in these late window patients without perfusion imaging are largely unknown. We assessed their characteristics and outcomes in routine clinical practice.

Quantified health and cost effects of faster endovascular treatment for large vessel ischemic stroke patients in the Netherlands.

Background: The effectiveness of endovascular treatment (EVT) for large vessel occlusion (LVO) stroke severely depends on time to treatment. However, it remains unclear what the value of faster treatment is in the years after index stroke. The aim of this study was to quantify the value of faster EVT in terms of health and healthcare costs for the Dutch LVO stroke population.

Improving quality of stroke care through benchmarking center performance: why focusing on outcomes is not enough.

Background: Between-center variation in outcome may offer opportunities to identify variation in quality of care. By intervening on these quality differences, patient outcomes may be improved. However, whether observed differences in outcome reflect the true quality improvement potential is not known for many diseases.

Admission Blood Pressure in Relation to Clinical Outcomes and Successful Reperfusion After Endovascular Stroke Treatment.

Background And Purpose: Optimal blood pressure (BP) targets before endovascular treatment (EVT) for acute ischemic stroke are unknown. We aimed to assess the relation between admission BP and clinical outcomes and successful reperfusion after EVT.

Methods: We used data from the MR CLEAN (Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial of Endovascular Treatment for Acute Ischemic Stroke in the Netherlands) Registry, an observational, prospective, nationwide cohort study of patients with ischemic stroke treated with EVT in routine clinical practice in the Netherlands.

Clinical and Imaging Determinants of Collateral Status in Patients With Acute Ischemic Stroke in MR CLEAN Trial and Registry.

Background and Purpose- Collateral circulation status at baseline is associated with functional outcome after ischemic stroke and effect of endovascular treatment. We aimed to identify clinical and imaging determinants that are associated with collateral grade on baseline computed tomography angiography in patients with acute ischemic stroke due to an anterior circulation large vessel occlusion. Methods- Patients included in the MR CLEAN trial (Multicenter Randomized Clinical Trial of Endovascular Treatment for Acute Ischemic Stroke in the Netherlands; n=500) and MR CLEAN Registry (n=1488) were studied.

National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale: An Alternative Primary Outcome Measure for Trials of Acute Treatment for Ischemic Stroke.

Background and Purpose- The modified Rankin Scale (mRS) at 3 months is the most commonly used primary outcome measure in stroke treatment trials, but it lacks specificity and requires long-term follow-up interviews, which consume time and resources. An alternative may be the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS), early after stroke. Our aim was to evaluate whether the NIHSS assessed within 1 week after treatment could serve as a primary outcome measure for trials of acute treatment for ischemic stroke.

Endovascular Treatment: The Role of Dominant Caliber M2 Segment Occlusion in Ischemic Stroke.

Background and Purpose- It is unclear whether endovascular treatment (EVT) is beneficial for patients with acute ischemic stroke with occlusion of the M2 segment of the middle cerebral artery. We aimed to compare functional outcomes, technical aspects, and complications of EVT between patients with acute ischemic stroke because of M2 and M1 occlusions in clinical practice. Furthermore, outcome and complications after EVT in dominant and nondominant caliber M2 division occlusions were studied.

Endovascular Treatment With or Without Prior Intravenous Alteplase for Acute Ischemic Stroke.

Background It is unclear whether intravenous thrombolysis ( IVT ) with alteplase before endovascular treatment ( EVT ) is beneficial for patients with acute ischemic stroke caused by a large vessel occlusion. We compared clinical and procedural outcomes, safety, and workflow between patients treated with both IVT and EVT and those treated with EVT alone in routine clinical practice. Methods and Results Using multivariable regression, we evaluated the association of IVT + EVT with 90-day functional outcome (modified Rankin Scale), mortality, reperfusion, first-pass effect, and symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage in the MR CLEAN (Multicenter Randomised Controlled Trial of Endovascular Treatment for Acute Ischemic Stroke in The Netherlands) Registry.

Effect of Interhospital Transfer on Endovascular Treatment for Acute Ischemic Stroke.

Background and Purpose- To assess the effect of inter-hospital transfer on time to treatment and functional outcome after endovascular treatment (EVT) for acute ischemic stroke, we compared patients transferred from a primary stroke center to patients directly admitted to an intervention center in a large nationwide registry. Methods- MR CLEAN (Multicenter Randomized Clinical Trial of Endovascular Treatment for Acute Ischemic Stroke in the Netherlands) Registry is an ongoing, prospective, observational study in all centers that perform EVT in the Netherlands. We included adult patients with an acute anterior circulation stroke who received EVT between March 2014 to June 2016.

Personalized Prehospital Triage in Acute Ischemic Stroke.

Background and Purpose- Direct transportation to a center with facilities for endovascular treatment might be beneficial for patients with acute ischemic stroke, but it can also cause harm by delay of intravenous treatment. Our aim was to determine the optimal prehospital transportation strategy for individual patients and to assess which factors influence this decision. Methods- We constructed a decision tree model to compare outcome of ischemic stroke patients after transportation to a primary stroke center versus a more distant intervention center.

Safety and Outcome of Endovascular Treatment for Minor Ischemic Stroke: Results From the Multicenter Clinical Registry of Endovascular Treatment of Acute Ischemic Stroke in the Netherlands.

Goal: Insufficient data is available about safety and efficacy of endovascular treatment (EVT) in patients with minor stroke symptoms because these patients were excluded from most randomized trials. We aimed to compare characteristics, functional outcome, and complications in patients with minor ischemic stroke National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score ≤5 (NIHSS score ≤5) and moderate to severe ischemic stroke (NIHSS score ≥6) due to intracranial proximal artery occlusion of the anterior circulation who underwent EVT.

Materials And Methods: We report patients with an anterior circulation occlusion who were included between March 2014 and June 2016 in the multicenter randomized clinical trial of EVT of acute ischemic stroke in the Netherlands Registry, a prospective, multicenter, observational study for stroke centers that perform EVT in the Netherlands.

Conscious sedation or local anesthesia during endovascular treatment for acute ischemic stroke.

Objective: To investigate the effect of conscious sedation (CS) on functional outcome and complication rates after intra-arterial treatment (IAT) for acute ischemic stroke (AIS) compared to the use of local anesthesia (LA) at the puncture site only.

Methods: Patients undergoing IAT for AIS with CS or LA in the Erasmus University Medical Center from March 2014 to June 2016 were included for analysis. The primary outcome was the score on the ordinal modified Rankin Scale (mRS).

Time to Endovascular Treatment and Outcome in Acute Ischemic Stroke: MR CLEAN Registry Results.

Background: Randomized, clinical trials in selected acute ischemic stroke patients reported that for every hour delay of endovascular treatment (EVT), chances of functional independence diminish by up to 3.4%. These findings may not be fully generalizable to clinical practice because of strict in- and exclusion criteria in these trials.

Endovascular treatment for acute ischaemic stroke in routine clinical practice: prospective, observational cohort study (MR CLEAN Registry).

Objective: To determine outcomes and safety of endovascular treatment for acute ischaemic stroke, due to proximal intracranial vessel occlusion in the anterior circulation, in routine clinical practice.

Design: Ongoing, prospective, observational cohort study.

Setting: 16 centres that perform endovascular treatment in the Netherlands.

Selection of patients for intra-arterial treatment for acute ischaemic stroke: development and validation of a clinical decision tool in two randomised trials.

 To improve the selection of patients with acute ischaemic stroke for intra-arterial treatment using a clinical decision tool to predict individual treatment benefit. Multivariable regression modelling with data from two randomised controlled clinical trials. 16 hospitals in the Netherlands (derivation cohort) and 58 hospitals in the United States, Canada, Australia, and Europe (validation cohort).