[Treatment of patients with ishemic stroke in the vertebral-basilar system in acute period: experience of using the neuroprotective drug Mexidol].

Objective: To assess the clinical efficacy and safety of Mexidol in patients in acute period of ishemic stroke in the vertebral-basilar system (iiVBS).
Material and Methods: An open randomized comparative study involved 52 patients. 32 of them received Mexidol (mail group, MG) and 20 received therapy without neuroprotective drugs. Assessment of the severity of clinical manifestations of iiVBS was performed using the Hoffenberth scale, stroke severity was assessed using the NIHSS, the modified Rankin Scale was used to assess the degree of disability in patients after stroke, neuropsychological examination of patients was performed using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), dynamics were compared on the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Subjective assessment scale for asthenia (MFI-20), the patients' quality of life was assessed using the EQ-5D.
Results: The use of Mexidol in the form of long-term sequential therapy in the patients of the MG led to a 53.3% decrease in the severity of clinical manifestations of iiVBS and a 59.5% decrease in neurological deficit according to the NIHSS scale. By the end of Mexidol therapy, 96.9% of patients MG were able to manage their own affairs without assistance (modified Rankin Scale), which was accompanied by regression of emotional disturbances and improved quality of life of patients.
Conclusion: Administration of Mexidol in therapy of patients with acute iiVBS can be considered the most justified, since it contributes to an earlier and more significant reduction of neurological deficit and improvement of patients' quality of life.