Administration of ex vivo-expanded bone marrow-derived EPCs reduced infarct volume and neurological deficits in acute focal brain ischemia-reperfusion injury caused, at least in part, by attenuation of endothelial dysfunction.

TGF-beta1 induced the transdifferentiation of BM-derived EPCs toward SMC lineage mediated by TGF-beta RII. The augmentation of intimal hyperplasia by transplantation of EPCs was probably due to the transdifferentiation and proliferation of EPCs induced by TGF-beta1.

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The purpose of this study was to investigate whether patients with low preoperative Diffusion-weighted Imaging Alberta Stroke Program Early Computed Tomography Score (DWI-ASPECTS) could benefit from mechanical thrombectomy for acute anterior circulation occlusion. This was a retrospective, non-blinded, cohort study. From September 2012 to August 2016, 83 consecutive patients of acute anterior circulation occlusion were treated with thrombectomy using second-generation devices or medical management. The DWI-ASPECTS was scored after the first MRI. Patient characteristics and clinical outcomes were compared between the treatment groups. Significant dependence was defined as a modified Rankin scale score ≥3 at 90 days. As a result, 33 patients underwent mechanical thrombectomy and 50 received medical management. In the mechanical thrombectomy group, the variable of lower DWI-ASPECTS (5, 4–6 vs. 8, 7–8, P < 0.001), especially ≤6, was significantly associated with poor prognosis. However, compared with patients of DWI-ASPECTS ≤ 6 who received medical management, there were significantly fewer patients with poor outcomes in thrombectomy (dependent in 11 of 15 vs. 23 of 23, respectively; P = 0.019). Although patients with lower pretreatment DWI-ASPECTS could benefit less from thrombectomy, their outcomes were still better than medical management. Therefore, mechanical thrombectomy could be considered in some patients with low pretreatment DWI-ASPECTS.

The risk of hemorrhagic complications during elective neurointervention including cerebral aneurysm coil embolization and carotid artery stenting under dual antiplatelet therapy is associated with the response to clopidogrel but not to aspirin. A PRU value of ≤175 discriminates between patients with and without hemorrhagic complications. Future prospective studies are required to validate whether a specific PRU value around 170-180 is predictive of hemorrhagic complications.

ObjectiveTo identify a proximal anterior circulation occlusion for effectively administering immediate mechanical thrombectomy by developing a novel, simple diagnostic scale to predict the occlusion, to compare its validity with available scales, and to assess its utility.MethodsTo develop a novel clinical scale, we retrospectively analyzed a cohort of 429 patients with acute ischemic stroke from a single center. The novel scale GAI2AA was applied to a prospective cohort of 259 patients from 3 stroke centers for external validation. The utility of the scale as an in-hospital triage was compared for the temporal factors of 158 patients with the occlusion.ResultsIn a scale-developmental phase, those with a proximal anterior circulation occlusion had significantly more frequent signs of hemispheric symptoms, including gaze palsy, aphasia, inattention, arm paresis, and atrial fibrillation. The GAI2AA scale was developed using consolidated hemispheric symptoms and was scored as follows: score = 2, arm paresis score = 1, and atrial fibrillation score = 1. A cutoff value ≥3 was optimal for the correlation between sensitivity (88%) and specificity (81%), with a C statistic of 0.90 (95% confidence interval 0.87–0.93). External validation indicated that discrimination was significantly better than or not different from that of available complex scales. Door-to-puncture time was significantly reduced (91 [82–111] vs 52 [32–75] minutes, p < 0.001).ConclusionThe GAI2AA scale showed high sensitivity and specificity when an optimal cutoff score was used and was useful as an in-hospital triage tool.

Summary: We report a case of repeated cerebral infarction caused by internal carotid artery (ICA) dissection triggered by an elongated styloid process, a form of Eagle syndrome. A 41-year-old man presented with sudden, mild left hemidysesthesia. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a small acute cerebral infarction in the right parietal cortex and insular cortex. Magnetic resonance angiography and digital subtraction angiography (DSA) revealed a right-sided ICA dissection distal to the carotid bifurcation. Idiopathic carotid artery dissection was suspected, and the patient was prescribed aspirin and observed. However, 5 months after the initial cerebral infarction, he had a second episode of left hemiparesis and confusion accompanied by occlusion of the right ICA. Because the area of impaired perfusion in the right hemisphere was greater than that suggested by the diffusion-weighted images of head MRI and clinical status was worse than expected, we performed acute revascularization with aspiration of the thrombus and stenting to treat the carotid dissection. Recanalization with thrombolysis of cerebral infarction (TICI)-grade IIB was achieved. Computed tomographic (CT) angiography combined with analysis of bony structures revealed close proximity of the right ICA and an elongated styloid process with its tip directed toward the dissection. In an angiographic suite, a dynamic cone beam CT was performed with the head of the patient variedly rotated and tilted; the carotid artery dissection appeared to be triggered by the elongated styloid process. Resection of this process was performed to prevent recurrence of the cerebral infarction. Under the guidance of a navi-