EVIDENCE BASED MEDICINE: State of endovascular therapy for acute ischaemic stroke

Acute strokes result from an occlusion of intracranial vessels by either a thrombus or embolus. The aim of acute treatment of ischaemic strokes is removal of this occlusion and recanalization of the vessel.The modes of therapy available include the administration of intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) or endovascular therapy involving either intraarterial thrombolysis with recombinant tPA, mechanical clot disruption or clot retrieval.