title: Mechanical thrombectomy using a solitaire stent in acute ischemic stroke; initial experience in 40 patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study was conducted in order to demonstrate the initial experience of the Solitaire AB stent in mechanical intracranial thrombectomy.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a retrospective review of 40 consecutive patients who underwent intra-arterial Solitaire AB stent thrombectomy for treatment of acute ischemic strokes between October 2010 and November 2011. Demographic, clinical, and radiological presentations and outcomes were studied.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twenty six men and 14 women with a mean initial National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score of 14.1 (range, 8-26) and a mean age of 65.4 (range, 32-89) years were included in this study. Occlusion sites were as follows: internal carotid artery (n = 11), middle cerebral artery M1 (n = 22), M2 (n = 5), and basilar artery (n = 2). Successful revascularization was achieved in 36 (90%) patients. The mean NIHSS score was 11.6 (range, 1-23) at 24 hours after the procedure, and 42.5% of patients showed a modified Rankin scale score of ≤ 2 at 90 days. New occlusion by migrated emboli was observed in one (2.5%) case. Post-procedural intracerebral hemorrhage occurred in only one case (2.5%), with an all-cause mortality of two (5%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The Solitaire AB device is a relatively safe and effective tool for use in performance of mechanical thrombectomy in patients with acute ischemic stroke.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, School of Medicine, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, Korea.
authors.forename: Gyu-Seong
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Bae
authors.forename: Hyon-Jo
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Kwon
authors.forename: Chang-Woo
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.forename: Seung-Won
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.forename: Seon-Hwan
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Hyeon-Song
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Koh