title: Endovascular therapy of acute ischemic stroke by interventional cardiologists: initial national experience.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We report our initial experience with thrombectomy devices in patients with acute ischemic stroke.
  
  
  METHODS
  Demographic, clinical, and angiographic findings of 19 consecutive patients (7 females and 12 males; mean age 61.4±12.5 years) with acute ischemic stroke were evaluated retrospectively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean initial National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score was 19.5±5.6. Middle cerebral artery was the occluded artery in all of the patients (proximal occlusion in 11, distal in 8 and tandem occlusions in 7 patients). Successful revascularization was achieved in 16 patients (84%). The mean NIHSS score was 8.4±8.2 at 24 hours after the procedure, and 60% of patients showed a modified Rankin scale score of ≤2 at 90 days. New occlusion by migrated emboli was observed in 2 (11%) cases. None of the patients had experienced post-procedural symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage; 3 patients died during the three-month follow-up. In all patients, thrombectomy was performed with retrievable Solitaire AB stent system.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This single-center experience with mechanical thrombectomy devices demonstrated that high success rates can be achieved by experienced interventional cardiologists in equipped cath labs throughout the country.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Bezmialem Vakıf University Faculty of Medicine, İstanbul, Turkey. atasal01@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Abdurrahman
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tasal
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Bezmialem Vakıf University Faculty of Medicine, İstanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ahmet
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bacaksız
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Bezmialem Vakıf University Faculty of Medicine, İstanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Mehmet Akif
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Vatankulu
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Bezmialem Vakıf University Faculty of Medicine, İstanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Talip
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Asil
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Bezmialem Vakıf University Faculty of Medicine, İstanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Omer
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Göktekin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D057510:Endovascular Procedures / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020244:Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011859:Radiography; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015607:Stents; D020521:Stroke / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D017131:Thrombectomy / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods