Remote Ischemic Conditioning —Feasible and Potentially Beneficial for Ischemic Stroke

Stroke is the second leading cause of death and disability in the world. In 1996, tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration and remains the only approved pharmacologic agent for treatment of ischemic stroke in the US. In 2015, mechanical thrombectomy was shown to be beneficial for large vessel occlusion ischemic stroke, although 50% of patients treated with mechanical thrombectomy remain disabled at 3 months. Due to short time windows for thrombolytic therapy administration and the stroke system infrastructure needed for mechanical thrombectomy, these reperfusion therapies are available to only a small proportion of patients who experience stroke. Worldwide, these treatments are used in less than 5% of patients with stroke, and in many low-income nations they are rarely used.
Source: JAMA - Category: General Medicine Source Type: research