New year, new goals for CRL NIR team
First positive randomized trial on acute stroke intervention affirms efficacy of CRL docs’ methods for treatment at Abbott Northwestern Hospital
MINNEAPOLIS, January 9, 2015 – A new randomized study published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) is affirming Consulting Radiologists, Ltd. (CRL) docs’ current methods of Acute Ischemic Stroke treatment at Abbott Northwestern Hospital.
The article, A Randomized Trial of Intra-arterial Treatment for Acute Ischemic Stroke, released on January 1st, focused on the landmark study called MR CLEAN (a multicenter randomized clinical trial of endovascular treatment for acute ischemic stroke in the Netherlands) for the treatment of Acute Ischemic Stroke (AIS). AIS is a disruption of blood flow to the brain, leading to permanent brain injury that affects over 700,000 people per year in the United States, with over 61,000 deaths.
“Our group eagerly anticipated the results of this trial. In fact, we (CRL at Abbott) are a site for THERAPY, a similarly designed randomized trial for which enrollment was halted once the preliminary results of MR CLEAN were announced before its publication in NEJM” – Statement from the CRL neurointerventional radiology (NIR) team
Intra-arterial treatment (IAT), more commonly known as endovascular treatment, is the process of restoring blood flow to the brain by physically removing blood clot using various catheter-based techniques. The study concluded that IAT administered within 6 hours after stroke onset was safe and effective.
“We want to reassure our patients and neuroscience colleagues that we are not changing our practice as a result of this study. In fact, the opposite is true – this study affirms our existing practice, which has always been founded in evidence-based medicine to the extent possible in a field as small as ours. Indeed we have been using the specific stent-retrieval technology used in the vast majority of MR CLEAN patients since it became available in the United States (one of the first U.S. sites, March 31, 2012),” stated Dr. Yasha Kayan, CRL neurointerventional radiologist.
The study provides the NIR team more motivation to improve their current stroke care.
“Multi-society consensus guidelines recommend a door-to-arterial puncture time of less than 120 minutes for acute stroke intervention. Through our combined efforts with our stroke neurology colleagues, the average door-to-puncture time at Abbott is 73 minutes,” said Kadkhodayan, MD.
The team has stated that their goal for 2015 is to lower door-to-puncture (treatment) time even further, with an ultimate goal of 60 minutes. The CRL NIR Team prides itself on offering the best possible neurovascular care for the Twin Cities metro area at Abbott Northwestern Hospital.
References:
Fransen, P., Beumer, D., Berkhemer, O., van den Berg, L., Lingsma, H., & van der Lugt, A. et al. (2014). MR CLEAN, a multicenter randomized clinical trial of endovascular treatment for acute ischemic stroke in the Netherlands: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial. Trials, 15(1), 343. doi:10.1186/1745-6215-15-343
New England Journal of Medicine,. (2015). A Randomized Trial of Intraarterial Treatment for Acute Ischemic Stroke — NEJM. Retrieved 9 January 2015, from http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1411587