RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Anterior Cerebral Artery Emboli in Combined Intravenous and Intra-arterial rtPA Treatment of Acute Ischemic Stroke in the IMS I and II Trials JF American Journal of Neuroradiology JO Am. J. Neuroradiol. FD American Society of Neuroradiology SP 1890 OP 1894 DO 10.3174/ajnr.A0702 VO 28 IS 10 A1 S. King A1 P. Khatri A1 J. Carrozella A1 J. Spilker A1 J. Broderick A1 M. Hill A1 T. Tomsick A1 for the IMS & IIMS II Investigators YR 2007 UL http://www.ajnr.org/content/28/10/1890.abstract AB BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Anterior cerebral artery (ACA) emboli may occur before or during fibrinolytic revascularization of middle cerebral artery (MCA) and internal carotid artery (ICA) T occlusions. We sought to determine the incidence and effect of baseline and new embolic ACA occlusions in the Interventional Management of Stroke (IMS) studies.MATERIALS AND METHODS: Case report forms, pretreatment and posttreatment arteriograms, and CTs from 142 subjects entered into IMS I & II were reviewed to identify subjects with baseline ACA occlusion, new ACA emboli occurring during fibrinolysis, subsequent CT-demonstrated infarction in the ACA distribution, and to evaluate global and lower extremity motor clinical outcome.RESULTS: During M1/M2 thrombolysis procedures, new ACA embolus occurred in 1 of 60 (1.7%) subjects. Baseline distal emboli were identified in 3 of 20 (15%) T occlusions before intra-arterial (IA) treatment, and new posttreatment distal ACA emboli were identified in 3 subjects. At 24 hours, 8 (32%) T occlusions demonstrated CT-ACA infarct, typically of small volume. Infarcts were less common following sonography microcatheter-assisted thrombolysis compared with standard microcatheter thrombolysis (P = .05). Lower extremity weakness was present in 9 of 10 subjects with ACA embolus/infarct at 24 hours. The modified Rankin 0 to 2 outcomes were achieved in 4 of 25 (16%) subjects with T occlusion overall, but in 0 of 10 subjects with distal ACA emboli or ACA CT infarcts (P = .07).CONCLUSIONS: With IV/IA recombinant tissue plasminogen activator treatment for MCA emboli, new ACA emboli are uncommon events. Distal ACA emboli during T-occlusion thrombolysis are not uncommon, typically lead to small ACA-distribution infarcts, and may limit neurologic recovery.