Published Online
on June 12, 2003

A more recent version of this article appeared on July 1, 2003

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Submitted on February 25, 2003
Accepted on February 28, 2003

Local Intra-arterial Fibrinolysis of Thromboemboli Occurring During Neuroendovascular Procedures With Recombinant Tissue Plasminogen Activator

Stefan Hähnel MD^*; Peter D. Schellinger MD; Alexander Gutschalk MD; Karsten Geletneky MD; Marius Hartmann MD; Michael Knauth MD; and Klaus Sartor MD

From the Divisions of Neuroradiology (S.H., M.H., M.K., K.S.) and Neurology (P.D.S., A.G.), Department of Neurology, and Department of Neurosurgery (K.G.), University of Heidelberg Medical Center, Heidelberg, Germany.

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: Stefan_Haehnel{at}med.uni-heidelberg.de.

Background and Purpose--There is a lack of systematic data regarding local intra-arterial fibrinolysis (LIF) of thromboemboli occurring during neuroendovascular procedures with the use of recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA). We report our technique for treating LIF of intracerebral thromboemboli occurring during neuroendovascular procedures.

Methods--Nine of 723 patients (1.2%) who underwent neuroendovascular procedures during the period from January 1997 to September 2002 suffered thromboembolic complications. These patients were treated by LIF with a maximum dose of 0.9 mg rtPA per kilogram body weight. Recanalization was categorized as successful (Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction [TIMI] grade 2 or 3) versus unsuccessful (TIMI grade 0 or 1), and clinical outcome was categorized as independent (Rankin Scale score 0 to 2) versus dependent or dead (Rankin Scale score 3 to 6).

Results--The minimum time between thrombus detection and beginning of LIF was 10 minutes, and the maximum time was 90 minutes. Successful recanalization was achieved in 4 of 9 patients (44%). All 9 patients suffered cerebral ischemic infarctions, and none of the patients sustained intracerebral hemorrhage. Two patients (22%) died from malignant brain infarctions. Four patients (44%) remained moderately disabled, and 3 patients (33%) were severely disabled 3 months after LIF.

Conclusions--Although we used relatively high doses of rtPA, the recanalization rates and clinical outcome of LIF in our patients were not satisfactory. Strategies for the prevention of thromboemboli during neuroendovascular procedures must be improved, and novel fibrinolytic or thrombolytic techniques should be developed.

Key words: embolism, intracranial • fibrinolysis • thrombosis • tissue plasminogen activator

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