Outcome predictors of intravenous thrombolytic therapy in acute ischemic stroke patients: an Egyptian center experiences

The use of intravenous thrombolytics in acute ischemic stroke management: A scoping review from 2008 till 2021 in the Arab world in the Middle East and North Africa

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this review was to assess and analyze the research output on intravenous thrombolysis in acute ischemic stroke in the Arab world in the Middle East and North Africa.

METHODS

Published literature on intravenous thrombolysis for acute ischemic stroke from 2008 to 2021 were retrieved from several electronic databases. Extracted records were analyzed in terms of year of publication, country, journal, research area, authors, and organizational affiliations.

RESULTS

A total of 37 studies were published between 2008 and 2021 from different Arab countries. Eight studies assessed the safety and efficacy of thrombolytic agents in AIS. Three studies were KAP studies addressing the knowledge, attitude and practice towards IVT. The majority of the selected studies (n=16) discussed the utilization rate of IVT among patients in different hospital settings across these countries. Ten studies reported the outcomes associated with the use of IVT for AIS.

CONCLUSION

This is the first scoping review to study the research activity related to the use of IVT in stroke in the Arab nations. In the last 15 years, stroke research productivity was very low in the Arab world compared to other regions of the world due to several impeding factors. Given the high burden of in-adherence to acute stroke treatment in the Arab nations, there is a serious need for an increased high-quality research activity to highlight the roadblocks associated with the limited use of IVT.

Prognostic nomogram for the outcomes in acute stroke patients with intravenous thrombolysis

Background and purpose

The prediction of neurological outcomes in ischemic stroke patients is very useful in treatment choices, as well as in post-stroke management. This study is to develop a convenient nomogram for the bedside evaluation of stroke patients with intravenous thrombolysis.

Materials and methods

We reviewed all enrolled stroke patients with intravenous thrombolysis retrospectively. Favorable outcome was defined as modified Rankin Score (mRs) less than 2 at 90 days post thrombolysis. We compared the clinical characteristics between patients with favorable outcome and poor outcome. Then, we applied logistic regression models and compared their predictability.

Results

A total of 918 patients were enrolled in this study, 448 patients from one hospital were included to develop a nomogram, whereas 470 patients from the other hospital were used for the external validation. Associated risk factors were identified by multivariate logistic regression. The nomogram was validated by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). A nomogram was developed with baseline NIHSS, blood sugar, blood cholesterol level, part-and full anterior circulation infarction (OCSP type). The AUC was 0.767 (95% CI 0.653–0.772) and 0.836 (95% CI 0.697–0.847) in the derivation and external validation cohorts, respectively. The calibration plot for the probability of severe neurological outcome showed an optimal agreement between the prediction by nomogram and actual observation in both derivation and validation cohorts.

Conclusion

A convenient outcome evaluation nomogram for patients with intravenous thrombolysis was developed, which could be used by physicians in making clinical decisions and predicting patients’ prognosis.

The potential role of insulin resistance in predicting outcome from intravenous thrombolytic therapy

Background

The potential impact of insulin resistance on stroke prognosis after IV thrombolysis is poorly understood. This study aimed to assess the effect of insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome on the outcome of IV thrombolysis in non-diabetic patients with acute ischaemic stroke.

Methods

This prospective observational study was conducted on 70 non-diabetic acute ischaemic stroke patients who received rt-PA within 3 h of stroke onset. Patients were subjected to baseline and follow-up NIHSS measurements at 24 h and 3 months post-treatment. Stroke outcome was assessed after 3 months using the Modified Rankin Scale (mRS). The homeostasis model assessment–insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) was calculated for the included patients at stroke onset.

Results

The mean age of included patients was 57.04 ± 14.39 years. Patients with unfavourable outcome had a significantly higher frequency of insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome, higher values of baseline NIHSS, insulin, HOMA-IR, uric acid and lower levels of HDL than those with favourable outcome (P value = 0.035, 0.007, ≤ 0.001, 0.001, ≤ 0.001, 0.002, 0.033, respectively). Each point increase in NIHSS before rt-PA increased the odds of an unfavourable outcome by 2.06 times (95% CI 1.22 − 3.478). Also, insulin resistance increased the odds of the unfavourable outcome by 11.046 times (95% CI 1.394–87.518). There was a statistically significant improvement in NIHSS 3 months after receiving rt-PA in all patients, significantly higher in patients who did not have insulin resistance or metabolic syndrome.

Conclusion

Insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome were associated with worse functional outcomes in non-diabetic stroke patients after receiving rt-PA.