International Stroke Conference (ISC) 2023

The decision to withdraw life-sustaining therapy (WLST) among acute hospitalized stroke patients is determined by several factors, including age, race, level of consciousness, state region, insurance status, ambulation status at baseline, and stroke centre type, suggests a study presented at ISC 2023.

Treatment with statin results in a decrease in major vascular events following acute ischaemic stroke, even in patients with low or well-controlled low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), as shown in a study presented at ISC 2023.

In the ARAMIS* trial, dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) using clopidogrel and aspirin was noninferior to intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) using alteplase in Chinese patients with minor nondisabling ischaemic stroke presenting within 4.5 hours of symptom onset.

The combination of cilostazol and isosorbide mononitrate boosts functional and cognitive outcomes in patients who have had lacunar strokes (subcortical infarcts <20 mm in diameter) in the phase II LACI-2* trial.

Findings from the RESCUE BT2 study support the potential of tirofiban to improve neurologic outcomes than aspirin in patients with acute ischaemic stroke without visible large or medium vessel occlusion (LVO or MVO) within 24 hours of last known well or of onset of stroke symptom progression. However, its efficacy was countered by the higher rate of symptomatic intracranial haemorrhage (sICH).

Not a lot of individuals, especially women, are initiated on dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) with aspirin and clopidogrel after a transient ischaemic attack or minor acute ischaemic stroke, and this is despite evidence showing that such a strategy may prevent a second and potentially more serious stroke, as reported in a study presented at ISC 2023.

Butylphthalide, a novel medication that contains a compound found in celery, appears to help with functional recovery in patients with ischaemic stroke, as shown in a study presented at ISC 2023.