AUTHOR=Salwi Sanjana , Niec Jan A. , Hassan Ameer E. , Lindsell Christopher J. , Khatri Pooja , Mocco J. , Saver Jeffrey L. , Mistry Eva A. 

TITLE=Endovascular Treatment for Acute Stroke Patients With a Pre-stroke Disability: An International Survey

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Neurology

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2021.714594

DOI=10.3389/fneur.2021.714594

ISSN=1664-2295

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Background:</bold> It is unclear what factors clinicians consider when deciding about endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) in acute ischemic stroke patients with a pre-existing disability. We aimed to explore international practice patterns and preferences for EVT in patients with a pre-stroke disability, defined as a modified Rankin score (mRS) ≥ 2.</p><p><bold>Methods:</bold> Electronic survey link was sent to principal investigators of five major EVT trials and members of a professional interventional neurology society.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> Of the 81 survey-responding clinicians, 57% were neuro-interventionalists and 33% were non-interventional stroke clinicians. Overall, 64.2% would never or almost never consider EVT for a patient with pre-stroke mRS of 4-5, and 49.3% would always or almost always offer EVT for a patient with pre-stroke mRS 2-3. Perceived benefit of EVT (89%) and severity of baseline disability (83.5%) were identified as the most important clinician-level and patient-level factors that influence EVT decisions in these patients.</p><p><bold>Conclusion:</bold> In this survey of 80 respondents, we found that EVT practice for patients with pre-stroke disability across the world is heterogenous and depends upon patient characteristics. Individual clinician opinions substantially alter EVT decisions in pre-stroke disabled patients.</p>