BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: We explored changes in the patient population and practice of endovascular therapy during the course of the Interventional Management of Stroke (IMS) III Trial. METHODS: Changes in baseline characteristics, use of baseline CT angiography, treatment times and specifics, and outcomes were compared between the first 4 protocols and the fifth and final protocol. RESULTS: Compared with subjects treated in the first 4 protocol versions (n=610), subjects treated in fifth and final protocol (n=46) were older (75 versus 68 years, P<0.0002) and less likely to have a pretreatment Rankin of 0 (76% versus 89%, P=0.01), were more likely to have a pretreatment CT angiography (65% versus 45%, P=0.009), had quicker median times in the endovascular arm from onset to start of intra-arterial therapy (209 versus 250 minutes, P=0.002) and to reperfusion (269 versus 344 minutes, P<0.0001), had a higher mean dose of total tissue-type plasminogen activator in the endovascular arm (74.0 versus 63.7 mg, P<0.0001), and were less likely to receive intra-arterial tissue-type plasminogen activator as part of the endovascular procedure (16% versus 44%, P=0.015). There were no significant differences in functional and safety outcomes between subjects treated in the 2 treatments arms in either the first 4 protocols or fifth protocol although the small sample size in the fifth protocol provided limited power. CONCLUSIONS: Endovascular technology and diagnostic approaches to acute stroke patients changed substantially during the IMS III Trial. Efforts to decrease the time to delivery of endovascular therapy were successful.
AD - From the Departments of Neurology and Rehabilitation Medicine and Radiology, University of Cincinnati Neuroscience Institute, University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center, Cincinnati (J.P.B., P.K., J.S., J.C., T.A.T.); Department of Public Health Sciences (Y.Y.P, S.D.Y., L.D.F.) and the Division of Emergency Medicine (E.C.J.), Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston; Calgary Stroke Program, Seaman Family MR Research Centre, Departments of Clinical Neurosciences and Radiology, Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada (A.M.D., M.D.H., M.G.); Stroke Institute, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh (T.G.J.); Melbourne Brain Centre, Royal Melbourne Hospital, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia (B.Y.); Department of Neuroradiology, Dresden University Stroke Center, University Hospital, Dresden, Germany (R.v.K.); Neurovascular Unit, Department of Neurology, Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron, Barcelona (C.A.M.); Department of Neurology, University Medical Center Utrecht and the Rudolph Magnus Institute of Neurosciences, Utrecht, the Netherlands, and the St. Antonius Hospital, Nieuwegein, the Netherlands (W.J.S.); Department of Neurology and Stroke Center, Lariboisiere Hospital, Paris (M.M.); Department of Neurology, Basel University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland (S.T.E.); George Institute for Global Health, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, University of Sydney, Sydney (C.A.); and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD (L.S.J.). joseph.broderick@uc.edu.BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: We explored changes in the patient population and practice of endovascular therapy during the course of the Interventional Management of Stroke (IMS) III Trial. METHODS: Changes in baseline characteristics, use of baseline CT angiography, treatment times and specifics, and outcomes were compared between the first 4 protocols and the fifth and final protocol. RESULTS: Compared with subjects treated in the first 4 protocol versions (n=610), subjects treated in fifth and final protocol (n=46) were older (75 versus 68 years, P<0.0002) and less likely to have a pretreatment Rankin of 0 (76% versus 89%, P=0.01), were more likely to have a pretreatment CT angiography (65% versus 45%, P=0.009), had quicker median times in the endovascular arm from onset to start of intra-arterial therapy (209 versus 250 minutes, P=0.002) and to reperfusion (269 versus 344 minutes, P<0.0001), had a higher mean dose of total tissue-type plasminogen activator in the endovascular arm (74.0 versus 63.7 mg, P<0.0001), and were less likely to receive intra-arterial tissue-type plasminogen activator as part of the endovascular procedure (16% versus 44%, P=0.015). There were no significant differences in functional and safety outcomes between subjects treated in the 2 treatments arms in either the first 4 protocols or fifth protocol although the small sample size in the fifth protocol provided limited power. CONCLUSIONS: Endovascular technology and diagnostic approaches to acute stroke patients changed substantially during the IMS III Trial. Efforts to decrease the time to delivery of endovascular therapy were successful.
PY - 2014 SN - 1524-4628 (Electronic)