Does ICA Occlusion Frequently Have Intracerebral Hemorrhage after IV Tissue Plasminogen Activator Therapy for Ischemic Stroke?

Background/Aims: The main predictors of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) are clinical stroke severity and large ischemic lesions. Therefore, ICA occlusion as severe stroke is thought to frequently have ICH after tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA) therapy. The aim of this study was to investigate whether ICA occlusion more frequently had ICH after t-PA therapy compared with other occluded arteries. Subjects and Methods: We prospectively studied consecutive stroke patients treated with t-PA within 3 h of onset. We investigated the frequency of ICH after t-PA therapy for each occluded artery. Results: 165 patients were enrolled. Initial MRA demonstrated ICA occlusion in 38 patients, M1 in 48, M2 in 28, and BA and PCA in 12. At 24 h after t-PA infusion, 113 (68.5%) patients (non-HT group) did not have hemorrhagic transformation, 37 (22.4%; HI group) had hemorrhagic cerebral infarction and 15 (9.1%; ICH group) had ICH. The ICH group most frequently had M2 occlusion, NIHSS >= 15, and >= 1/3 of the MCA territory among the three groups. The frequency of ICH was 2.6% in no occlusion, 10.5% in ICA occlusion, 6.3% in M1, 21.4% in M2, and 8.3% in PCA and BA (p = 0.1016). Conclusion: Patients with ICA occlusion did not have ICH more frequently after t-PA therapy in comparison to other occluded arteries. Copyright (C) 2011 S. Karger AG, Basel