Good Clinical and Radiological Correlation from Standard Perfusion Computed Tomography Accurately Identifies Salvageable Tissue in Ischemic Stroke

Recommendations on the use of computed tomography in the stroke code: Consensus document SENR, SERAU, GEECV-SEN, SERAM

The Spanish Society of Emergency Radiology (SERAU), the Spanish Society of Neuroradiology (SENR), the Spanish Society of Neurology through its Cerebrovascular Diseases Study Group (GEECV-SEN) and the Spanish Society of Medical Radiology (SERAM) have met to draft this consensus document that will review the use of computed tomography in the stroke code patients, focusing on its indications, the technique for its correct acquisition and the possible interpretation mistakes.

A Review on Computer Aided Diagnosis of Acute Brain Stroke

Amongst the most common causes of death globally, stroke is one of top three affecting over 100 million people worldwide annually. There are two classes of stroke, namely ischemic stroke (due to impairment of blood supply, accounting for ~70% of all strokes) and hemorrhagic stroke (due to bleeding), both of which can result, if untreated, in permanently damaged brain tissue. The discovery that the affected brain tissue (i.e., 'ischemic penumbra') can be salvaged from permanent damage and the bourgeoning growth in computer aided diagnosis has led to major advances in stroke management. Abiding to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, we have surveyed a total of 177 research papers published between 2010 and 2021 to highlight the current status and challenges faced by computer aided diagnosis (CAD), machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL) based techniques for CT and MRI as prime modalities for stroke detection and lesion region segmentation. This work concludes by showcasing the current requirement of this domain, the preferred modality, and prospective research areas.

Utilization of Emergent Neuroimaging for Thrombolysis-Eligible Stroke Patients

BACKGROUND

Advances in diagnostic imaging of stroke include multimodal techniques such as noninvasive angiography and perfusion imaging. We aimed to characterize trends in neuroimaging utilization among acute stroke patients. Utilization of multimodal imaging for acute stroke in the community has remained largely uncharacterized despite its increased adoption at academic medical centers.

METHODS

We quantified neuroimaging utilization in the emergency department (ED) for 1,700 hyperacute stroke patients presenting <2 hours after symptom onset who participated in the National Institutes of Health Field Administration of Stroke Therapy-Magnesium (FAST-MAG) study throughout Los Angeles and Orange Counties. FAST-MAG provided no recommendation as to imaging utilization.

RESULTS

A total of 1,700 cases were imaged a median (interquartile range [IQR]) of 92 (74-120) minutes after last known well time and 28 (19-41) minutes after ED arrival. The initial scanner used in the ED was computed tomography (CT) in a preponderance of cases (N = 1,612, 95%), with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in 88 cases (5%). CT angiography (CTA) was obtained in 192 (11%) and perfusion CT (CTP) in 91 (5.4%) cases. MRI imaging was universally obtained using diffusion-weighted images, 60% with MR angiography and 33% included perfusion imaging. Rates of concomitant CTA or CTP use increased in the later years of the study from 4% in 2005-2006, 2% in 2007-2008, 8% in 2009-2010, and 26% in 2011-2012 (P for trend < .001).

CONCLUSIONS

Among acute stroke patients, noncontrast CT was the most common initial imaging strategy in clinical practice in the 2005-2012 time period, though use of concomitant CTA grew to one-quarter of cases, suggestive of an upward trend.