Effective and safe conditions of low-frequency transcranial ultrasonic thrombolysis for acute ischemic stroke: neurologic and histologic evaluation in a rat middle cerebral artery stroke model.
OBJECTIVE
Transcranial ultrasound (TUS) enhances thrombolysis and is expected to be useful for the treatment of ischemic stroke. However, neither its effectiveness in improving neurologic outcome nor its safety in living tissue has been fully established. We examined the efficacy and safety of low-frequency TUS under appropriate conditions of ultrasound for thrombolytic treatment in a rat middle cerebral artery stroke model.


METHODS
Sixty-five male Wistar rats were used. Rats with right middle cerebral artery stroke exhibiting left hemiparesis were blindly selected and randomly assigned to 1 of 3 groups: (1) control, no therapy; (2) tPA, intravenous administration of tissue plasminogen activator 3 hours after middle cerebral artery stroke, or (3) TUS, tPA administration and application of TUS (490 kHz, continuous wave, at an intensity of 0.8 W/cm(2)). Twenty-four hours after the onset of stroke, neurologic improvement was evaluated and brains were then removed. Thrombolysis at the origin of the right middle cerebral artery was examined. Thrombolysis ratio, cerebral infarct ratio, and rate of histologic evidence of hemorrhage were compared in the 3 groups.


RESULTS
Significantly better neurologic improvement (P=0.008), a higher thrombolysis ratio (P=0.041), and a reduction of cerebral infarct volume (P=0.047) were obtained in the TUS group compared with the tPA group, without an increase in hemorrhagic transformation.


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings suggest that thrombolytic treatment with low-frequency TUS under appropriate conditions could be an effective and safe method of treatment for ischemic stroke.
Saguchi
Takayuki
T
Department of Neurosurgery, Jikei University School of Medicine, 3-25-8 Nishi-shinbashi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-8461, Japan. takayukisaguchi@jikei.ac.jp
Onoue
Hisashi
H
Urashima
Mitsuyoshi
M
Ishibashi
Toshihiro
T
Abe
Toshiaki
T
Furuhata
Hiroshi
H
D000818:Animals; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000150:complications* / Q000209:etiology; D002543:Cerebral Hemorrhage / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology; D002544:Cerebral Infarction / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005343:Fibrinolytic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015994:Incidence; D020244:Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery / Q000150:complications; D008297:Male; D009420:Nervous System / Q000503:physiopathology; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D020521:Stroke / Q000209:etiology* / Q000401:mortality / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D015912:Thrombolytic Therapy / Q000009:adverse effects; D010959:Tissue Plasminogen Activator / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014464:Ultrasonic Therapy / Q000009:adverse effects
D005343:Fibrinolytic Agents; D010959:Tissue Plasminogen Activator