Endovascular Management of Acute Stroke in the Elderly: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: Acute ischemic stroke occurs more frequently, presents with more severe symptoms, and has worse outcomes in elderly patients. The safety and efficacy of endovascular therapy for acute stroke in this age group has not been fully established.

Purpose: We present the results of a systematic review and meta-analysis examining clinical, procedural, and radiologic outcomes of endovascular therapy for acute stroke in patients older than 80 years of age.

Data Sources: We searched PubMed, MEDLINE, and EMBASE from 1992 to week 35 of 2017 for studies evaluating endovascular therapy for acute stroke in the elderly.

Study Selection: Two independent reviewers selected studies and abstracted data. The primary end point was good functional outcome at 3 months defined as modified Rankin Scale score of ≤2.

Data Analysis: Data were analyzed using random-effects meta-analysis.

Data Synthesis: Seventeen studies reporting on 860 patients were included. The rate of good functional outcome at 3 months was 27% (95% CI, 21%–32%). Mortality at 3 months was 34% (95% CI, 23%–44%). Successful recanalization was achieved in 78% of patients (95% CI, 72%–85%). Procedure-related complications occurred in 11% (95% CI, 4%–17%). The incidence of intracranial hemorrhage was 24% (95% CI, 15%–32%), and for symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage, it was 8% (95% CI, 5%–10%). The mean time to groin was 251 minutes (95% CI, 224–278 minutes). Procedure time was 99 minutes (95% CI, 67–131 minutes).

Limitations: I² values were above 50% for all outcomes, indicating substantial heterogeneity.

Conclusions: Good functional recovery in octogenarians treated with endovascular therapy for acute stroke can be achieved in a high proportion of patients despite the higher incidence of comorbidity in this cohort. Outcomes are inferior to those reported for younger patients; however, endovascular therapy can allow at least 1 in 4 patients older than 80 years of age to regain independent function at 3 months. More research is required to improve patient selection in the elderly, but age should not be a discriminator when deciding to offer endovascular therapy for patients with acute stroke.