Abstract 183: Use, Safety and Outcomes with Thrombolysis in Ischemic Stroke among Pregnant and Non-Pregnant Women

Background: Pregnancy and recent cesarean delivery are thought to pose unacceptable complication risks from IV thrombolysis (tPA), and most pregnant or recently postpartum women with ischemic stroke (IS) do not receive IV tPA. We sought to determine the frequency of IV tPA use and short term outcomes among pregnant vs. non-pregnant women with IS in the Get With the Guidelines Stroke Registry. Methods: Pregnant or recently postpartum ( Results: Pregnant patients were less likely to receive IV tPA than non-pregnant patients (15/338 (4.4%) vs. 1913/24303 (7.9%), p = 0.03). The primary reasons documented for non-treatment in the 0-3 hour timeframe were pregnancy itself (58% vs. 0%) and recent surgery (47% vs. 12%). Other less commonly noted reasons were stroke symptoms too mild (16% vs. 31%) or rapid improvement (13% vs. 32%). There were no differences in major complications between groups (Table). Discharge outcomes between groups were comparable, with low rates of in-hospital mortality (0-2%) and high rates of home discharge (60-72%). Only the proportion with length of stay > 4 days differed, and was more frequent among pregnant patients (Table). Conclusions: Pregnant patients with IS undergo IV thrombolysis infrequently; less often than non-pregnant patients of childbearing age. Despite the rare use, the short term outcomes and complication rates in these pregnant patients generally appear to be favorable and similar to non-pregnant women. As the data are underpowered to show true differences between the groups, larger studies are warranted to study the efficacy and safety of thrombolysis in pregnancy.