Symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage following intravenous thrombolysis for acute ischemic stroke: a critical review of case definitions.

Symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (SICH) is a devastating complication of intravenous thrombolysis treatment that is associated with high mortality. Clinical trials, stroke registries and cohort studies employ different case definitions to identify stroke patients with SICH following intravenous thrombolysis. We systematically reviewed the reported rates of SICH following intravenous thrombolysis and compared their consistency with mortality outcomes. Studies were identified from the PubMed and Embase databases from January 1994 to July 2011 by cross-referencing the following MeSH terms: 'thrombolysis', 'recombinant tissue plasminogen activator', 'rtPA', 'hemorrhagic stroke', 'cerebral hemorrhage', 'hematoma' and 'ischemic stroke'. Demographic information, baseline National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores, time from stroke onset to intravenous thrombolysis, SICH and mortality rates were derived from published data in 7 randomized controlled trials, 7 stroke registries and 10 cohort studies (4 multicenter and 6 single center) with more than 200 consecutively recruited patients. Mortality rates were considered as the percentage of patients treated with intravenous thrombolysis who died within 90 days after stroke. The mean age of patients included in this analysis was 68.8 years (standard deviation, SD 2.9, range 63-75), of whom 56.3% (SD 4.5, range 45-63) were men. They presented with a mean baseline NIHSS of 12.5 (SD 1.4, range 9-15) and received intravenous thrombolysis 175 min (SD 62, range 120-328) from stroke onset. The overall mean SICH and mortality rates of patients treated with intravenous thrombolysis were 5.6% (SD 2.3) and 14.7% (SD 4.8), respectively. A moderate correlation was observed between the incidence of SICH and mortality in patients treated with intravenous thrombolysis (r = 0.401, p = 0.050). The variation in SICH rates was highest across studies that reported SICH rates using the Safe Implementation of Thrombolysis in Stroke-Monitoring Study (SITS-MOST) criteria compared with the European Cooperative Acute Stroke Study and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) criteria. Studies that defined SICH as parenchymal hemorrhage with a neurological decline NIHSS ≥4 occurring within 36 h of intravenous thrombolysis reported a higher consistency between SICH and mortality rates (correlation coefficient 0.631). SICH rates vary considerably between studies and these differences may relate to the differences in the criteria used to define SICH. Until a case definition with high interrater agreement and good correlation with stroke outcomes becomes available, detailed information on the type of bleeding, the extent of NIHSS deterioration, neuroimaging features and the time from thrombolysis to diagnosis of hemorrhage should be reported to permit a correct interpretation of SICH rates.

Seet RC ，Rabinstein AA 《-》

Combined anti-platelet therapy with aspirin and clopidogrel: risk factor for thrombolysis-related intracerebral hemorrhage in acute ischemic stroke?

Hermann A ，Dzialowski I ，Koch R ，Gahn G ... -  《-》

Early neurological deterioration within 24 hours after intravenous rt-PA therapy for stroke patients: the Stroke Acute Management with Urgent Risk Factor Assessment and Improvement rt-PA Registry.

The initial 24 h after thrombolysis are critical for patients' conditions, and continuous neurological assessment and blood pressure measurement are required during this time. The goal of this study was to identify the clinical factors associated with early neurological deterioration (END) within 24 h of stroke patients receiving intravenous recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA) therapy and to clarify the effect of END on 3-month outcomes. A retrospective, multicenter, observational study was conducted in 10 stroke centers in Japan. A total of 566 consecutive stroke patients [211 women, 72 ± 12 years old, the median initial NIH Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score of 13] treated with intravenous rt-PA (0.6 mg/kg alteplase) was studied. END was defined as a 4-point or greater increase in the NIHSS score at 24 h from the NIHSS score just before thrombolysis. END was present in 56 patients (9.9%, 18 women, 72 ± 10 years old) and was independently associated with higher blood glucose [odds ratio (OR) 1.17, 95% confidence intervals (CI) 1.07-1.28 per 1 mmol/l increase, p < 0.001], lower initial NIHSS score (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.87-0.97 per 1-point increase, p = 0.002), and internal carotid artery (ICA) occlusion (OR 5.36, 95% CI 2.60-11.09, p < 0.001) on multivariate analysis. Symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage within the initial 36 h from thrombolysis was more common in patients with END than in the other patients (per NINDS/Cochrane protocol, OR 10.75, 95% CI 4.33-26.85, p < 0.001, and per SITS-MOST protocol, OR 12.90, 95% CI 2.76-67.41, p = 0.002). At 3 months, no patients with END had a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score of 0-1. END was independently associated with death and dependency (mRS 3-6, OR 20.44, 95% CI 6.96-76.93, p < 0.001), as well as death (OR 19.43, 95% CI 7.75-51.44, p < 0.001), at 3 months. Hyperglycemia, lower baseline NIHSS score, and ICA occlusion were independently associated with END after rt-PA therapy. END was independently associated with poor 3-month stroke outcome after rt-PA therapy.

Mori M ，Naganuma M ，Okada Y ，Hasegawa Y ，Shiokawa Y ，Nakagawara J ，Furui E ，Kimura K ，Yamagami H ，Kario K ，Okuda S ，Koga M ，Minematsu K ，Toyoda K ... -  《-》

Symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage after intravenous thrombolysis in Chinese patients: comparison of prediction models.

To assess the performance of risk scores in predicting symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (SICH) after intravenous thrombolysis (IVT). A multicenter prospective study was performed in 811 patients who underwent IVT with standard-dose recombinant tissue plasminogen activator within 4.5 hours of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) onset in 67 stroke centers involved in the Thrombolysis Implementation and Monitor of acute ischemic Stroke in China program from May 2007 to April 2012. SEDAN (blood sugar, early infarct signs, [hyper]dense cerebral artery sign, age) score, Safe Implementation of Thrombolysis in Stroke (SITS)-SICH score, Glucose Race Age Sex Pressure Stroke Severity (GRASPS) score, Multicenter Stroke Survey (MSS) score, and Stroke Prognostication using Age and National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (SPAN)-100 index were calculated in selected patients, and their predictive performance for SICH was compared according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), Safe Implementation of Thrombolysis in Stroke-Monitoring Study (SITS-MOST), and European Cooperative Acute Stroke Study (ECASS)-II criteria. For predicting the risk of SICH (NINDS definition) after IVT, the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of MSS score was the highest (.71, P < .0001). For predicting the risk of SICH (SITS-MOST definition) after IVT, the area under the ROC curve of GRASPS score was the highest (.73, P = .005). For predicting SICH (ECASS-II definition) after IVT, the area under the ROC curve of MSS score was the highest (.73, P < .0001). SITS-SICH, GRASPS, and MSS scores predicted the risk of SICH after IVT in patients with AIS, but only the latter 2 were better in the Chinese population. MSS score had the best predictive performance for SICH using NINDS and ECASS-II definitions, whereas GRASPS score was the best for SICH using the SITS-MOST definition.

Li M ，Wang-Qin RQ ，Wang YL ，Liu LB ，Pan YS ，Liao XL ，Wang YJ ，Xu AD ... -  《-》

Patient outcomes from symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage after stroke thrombolysis.

Strbian D ，Sairanen T ，Meretoja A ，Pitkäniemi J ，Putaala J ，Salonen O ，Silvennoinen H ，Kaste M ，Tatlisumak T ，Helsinki Stroke Thrombolysis Registry Group ... -  《-》