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Background Recent trials confirmed the efficacy and safety of endovascular thrombectomy in patients with low Alberta Stroke Program Early Computed Tomography Score (ASPECTS); however, evidence in tandem lesions is limited. This study evaluates endovascular thrombectomy safety and efficacy in patients with acute large‐vessel occlusion with tandem lesions, stratified by baseline ASPECTS. Methods and Results We conducted a retrospective analysis of data from 16 centers. Inclusion criteria included the following: age ≥18 years, anterior circulation tandem lesions, endovascular thrombectomy

Background Flow diversion has revolutionized the management of wide‐necked intracranial aneurysms (IAs). We aimed to assess the effectiveness and safety of the new generation 64‐wire Surpass Evolve for the treatment of unruptured small/medium‐sized IAs. Methods and Results This is a subanalysis from the SEASE (Safety and Effectiveness Assessment of the Surpass Evolve) registry, an observational cohort study including 15 academic institutions in North America and Europe between July 2020 and October 2022. Patients with wide‐necked saccular IAs, measuring

Background The presence of an incorporated branch as well as its anatomical relationship to the intracranial aneurysms (IAs) and the parent artery may affect the occlusion outcome following flow diversion. This study evaluated the safety and effectiveness of the cobalt‐chromium Surpass Evolve (Stryker), a 64‐wire flow diversion device for the treatment of IAs with incorporated branches. Methods This subanalysis uses data from the SEASE (Safety and Effectiveness Assessment of Surpass Evolve) registry to retrieve data related to IAs with incorporated branches. Those IAs were classified by a core lab into 4 categories based on their anatomical relationship to the parent artery and branch: (A) sidewall anatomic, (B) sidewall hemodynamic, (C) neck branch, and (D) dome branch. We compared the outcomes based on their incorporated branch's relation to the dome (A–C versus D). Results This study included 67 patients and IAs. Most IAs were in the posterior communicating artery (46.3%), with a median size of 4.35 mm. Age, sex, comorbidities, baseline functional‐status, and IA features were similar between the 2 groups. Among those, 53 (79.1%) had branches emerging from the dome, and 14 (20.9%) had branches originating from other locations (A = 7, B = 2, and C = 5). At a median imaging follow‐up of 10.5 months, complete occlusion was lower in IAs with a branch from the sac compared with those with the neck (60.8% versus 92.9%; P = 0.026), with an overall occlusion of 67.7%. Thromboembolic and hemorrhagic complications, as well as retreatment, were reported in 1.6% and 3.1% of cases, respectively, with no significant differences between groups. Conclusion Our analysis underscores the influence of branch origin on occlusion rates, with the neck‐originating branch demonstrating higher occlusion rates. These insights emphasize the role of anatomical considerations in treatment strategies, follow‐up timelines, and designing future clinical trials. Further studies are warranted to explore these variations across different flow diversion technologies.

Background Carotid artery stenting (CAS) has emerged as a viable alternative to carotid endarterectomy for managing carotid artery stenosis in high‐risk patients. Although transfemoral arterial access remains the preferred method, it is associated with inherent limitations and potential complications. Consequently, exploring transradial artery access as a potential option becomes crucial in optimizing patient outcomes and procedural success rates. There are limited data comparing the outcomes of the transradial with the transfemoral approach for CAS. This study aimed to systematically review and meta‐analyze the outcomes and complication rates between transradial and transfemoral access for CAS. Methods A systematic electronic search was conducted in 4 databases. Studies with randomized or nonrandomized designs, involving CAS by the transradial or transfemoral approach, were included. Outcomes of interest were stroke, transient ischemic attack, death, myocardial infarction, and access site complications. A meta‐analysis was performed, analyzing pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% CIs to assess the effect size. Results Six studies with a total of 6917 patients were included, of whom 602 (8.7%) underwent the transradial approach and 6315 (91.3%) the transfemoral approach. The meta‐analysis showed no significant difference in stroke occurrence between the transradial and transfemoral groups (transradial:1.7% versus transfemoral:1.9%; OR = 0.98 [95% CI, 0.49–1.96]; I2 = 0%). Similarly, no significant difference was found in death (TR:1% versus transfemoral:0.9%; OR = 0.95 [95% CI, 0.38–2.37]; I2 = 0%), myocardial infarction (transradial:0.2% versus transfemoral:0.3%; OR = 1.53 [95% CI, 0.20–11.61]; I2 = 0%), transient ischemic attack (transradial:0.4% versus transfemoral:1%; OR = 0.46 [95% CI, 0.11–1.95]; I2 = 0%), or access site complications (transradial:2.2% versus transfemoral:1%; OR = 0.97 [95% CI, 0.48–1.98]; I2 = 0%). Conclusion No significant differences were observed in stroke, death, myocardial infarction, transient ischemic attack, or access site complications on comparing thetransradial and transfemoral approaches for CAS. The transradial approach shows promise as an alternative method for CAS, offering potential benefits without increased risk of complications. However, further studies are needed to confirm these findings.

Background Procedural intravenous cangrelor has been proposed as an effective platelet inhibition strategy for stenting in acute ischemic stroke. We aimed to compare the safety profile of low‐dose intravenous cangrelor versus dual oral antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) loading in patients with acute cervical tandem lesions. Methods We retrospectively identified cases from an international multicenter cohort who underwent intraprocedural administration of intravenous cangrelor (15 μg/kg followed by an infusion of 2 μg/kg per min) or DAPT loading during acute tandem lesions intervention. Safety outcomes included rates of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage, parenchymal hematoma type 2, petechial hemorrhage, and in‐stent thrombosis. Inverse probability of treatment weighting matching was used to reduce confounding. Results From 691 patients, we included 195 patients, 30 of whom received intravenous cangrelor and 165 DAPT. The DAPT regimens were aspirin+clopidogrel (93.3%) or aspirin+ticagrelor (6.6%). After inverse probability of treatment weighting, the patients treated with cangrelor were not at greater odds of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (odds ratio [OR], 1.30 [95% CI, 0.09–17.3]; P=0.837), symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage–parenchymal hematoma type 2 (OR, 0.54 [95% CI, 0.05–4.98]; P=0.589), or petechial hemorrhage (OR, 1.11 [95% CI, 0.38–3.28]; P=0.836). Similarly, the rate of in‐stent thrombosis was not significantly different between the 2 groups (1.8% versus 0%; P=0.911). Conclusion Cangrelor at the half dose of the myocardial infarction protocol showed a similar safety profile compared with the commonly used DAPT loading protocols in patients with acute tandem lesions. Further studies with larger samples are warranted to elucidate the safety of antiplatelet therapy in tandem lesions.

Introduction While mechanical thrombectomy (MT) is proven to be lifesaving and disability‐sparing, there remains disparities in access in low‐ to middle‐income countries (LTMICs), including the Caribbean. We hypothesized that team‐oriented MT workshops would improve MT skills and change practice patterns for MT services in this region. Methods We designed a 22‐hour MT workshop which was conducted as two identical events: in English (Jamaica, January 2022), and in Spanish (Dominican Republic, May 2022). The workshops included neurointerventional teams (practicing neurointerventionalists, neuroIR nurses and technicians), focused on patient selection, acutetreatment and post‐MT care of patients with stroke due to large vessel occlusion. MT skills, procedure duration and potential harmful techniques were recorded before and after by independent evaluators utilizing flow models under fluoroscopy. Overall course evaluation was performed. Press conferences were included to raise stroke awareness and emphasize the importance of early stroke presentation. Results Twenty‐two physicians and their teams from eight countries across the Caribbean completed the didactic and hands‐on training. Eighteen groups completed both pre‐ and post‐MT hands‐on testing and were included in the final analysis. Pre‐ and post‐course hands‐on assessment showed that the course effectively reduced the total time to complete a simulated MT procedure from 36.5 to 21.1 min (Figure 1; p< 1.0×10‐7). All groups showed an improvement in measures of good MT techniques, which resulted in a 39% improvement in complete reperfusion (8/18 groups achieved a TICI 3 score on pre‐course vs. 15/18 groups on post‐course). There was a significant reduction in total potentially dangerous maneuvers by 82% (p< 0.002), with 12/18 groups performing an average 2 dangerous maneuvers on pre‐course simulation vs. only 4/18 groups performing an average 1 dangerous maneuver after completing the course. Participants also demonstrated increased knowledge of stroke treatment and stroke system of care. Utilizing a basic stroke knowledge questionnaire, we found 28% respondents did not have a baseline passing grade vs 100% passed after the workshop. The average post‐workshop knowledge score was 80%. Universally the workshop was rated as very satisfactory and likely to change practice in 93% of the Dominican Republic participants and 75% among Jamaican participants. Conclusions A team‐based approach to MT training is novel, effective in reducing time to reperfusion and harmful techniques, and improves competencies. Team members independently demonstrated advanced stroke learning post‐training. To our knowledge, this is the first workshop of its kind; it is feasible, practice‐changing and creates a pathway for increasing access to MT in LTMICs.