Abstract
New York City has become the global epicenter of the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Despite a massive shift in health care resources, cerebrovascular disease continues to be a substantial burden. We review the first 10 patients undergoing thrombectomy following a series of governmental and institutional policy changes diverting resources to the care of critically ill patients with COVID-19. Ten patients with emergent large-vessel occlusion underwent thrombectomy between March 23 and April 1, 2020. Five patients tested positive for the COVID-19 virus. Successful reperfusion was achieved in 9 of 10 patients, at a median time of 37 minutes from vascular access. The postprocedural NIHSS score improved by an average of 7.7 points. Of the 5 patients positive for COVID-19, none have experienced a critical respiratory illness. We report the early incidence of COVID-19 positivity in patients with emergent large-vessel occlusion and demonstrate that thrombectomy continues to be an efficacious option, as well as safe for health care providers.
Highlights
The goals of this report are the following: 1) document the prevalence of COVID-19 in patients presenting with emergent large-vessel occlusion (ELVO) during the early COVID-19 period; 2) determine whether initial outcomes of such patients undergoing thrombectomy are consistent with prior experience; 3) determine whether performing thrombectomy would result in COVID-19 infection of involved health care workers; and 4) discuss changes to the overall stroke workflow in adapting to the high infectious concerns and the diversion of health care resources
We reviewed the medical records of patients who underwent stroke thrombectomy for ELVO during a 9-day time span from March 23 to April 1, 2020, within our multi-institutional health care system
Patients for intervention were triaged as either patients under investigation for COVID-19 (PUI) or non-PUI
Summary
The goals of this report are the following: 1) document the prevalence of COVID-19 in patients presenting with emergent large-vessel occlusion (ELVO) during the early COVID-19 period; 2) determine whether initial outcomes of such patients undergoing thrombectomy are consistent with prior experience; 3) determine whether performing thrombectomy would result in COVID-19 infection of involved health care workers; and 4) discuss changes to the overall stroke workflow in adapting to the high infectious concerns and the diversion of health care resources
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
