The pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 has unique implications for the anesthetic management of endovascular therapy for acute ischemic stroke. The Society for Neuroscience in Anesthesiology and Critical Care appointed a task force to provide timely, consensus-based expert recommendations using available evidence for the safe and effective anesthetic management of endovascular therapy for acute ischemic stroke during the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal of this consensus statement is to provide recommendations for anesthetic management considering the following (and they are): (1) optimal neurological outcomes for patients; (2) minimizing the risk for health care professionals, and (3) facilitating judicious use of resources while accounting for existing variability in care. It provides a framework for selecting the optimal anesthetic technique (general anesthesia or monitored anesthesia care) for a given patient and offers suggestions for best practices for anesthesia care during the pandemic. Institutions and health care providers are encouraged to adapt these recommendations to best suit local needs, considering existing practice standards and resource availability to ensure safety of patients and providers.

The finding of dilated, elongated, and tortuous vessels on brain imaging should prompt clinicians to determine what vascular anomaly is present. Importantly, not all suspicious serpentine flow voids are manifestations of arteriovenous malformations or arteriovenous fistulas. Other types of intracranial vasculopathies should also be considered. The authors report a rare case of dilated, tortuous, and redundant left posterior communicating artery and left P2 segment of the posterior cerebral artery identified in a young healthy adult that remained stable over a 30-year period. Dynamic and 3D images were critical for determining the type of vascular anomaly and for guiding appropriate management. The authors propose that this case represents a pure arterial malformation and discuss its distinguishing features.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE:Intracranial hemorrhage is the most dreaded complication of neurothrombectomy therapy for acute ischemic stroke. The determinants of intracranial hemorrhage and its impact on clinical course remain incompletely delineated. The purpose of this study is to further investigate the clinical and procedural factors leading to intracranial hemorrhage and to define the clinical impact of different hemorrhagic subtypes.

Mechanical thrombectomy devices comprise a wide array of endovascular tools cleared for removing thrombi from the neurovasculature in acute ischemic stroke patients. In the United States, 3 classes of mechanical thrombectomy devices have been cleared by the Food and Drug Administration: coil retrievers in 2004, aspiration devices in 2008, and stent retrievers in 2012. Available evidence and fundamental physiologic principles suggest that mechanical thrombectomy is appropriate for patients with large, proximal intracranial artery occlusions due to emboli of cardiac or arterial origin and is most effective when performed as soon as feasible after onset in patients known to still be harboring salvageable penumbral tissue. This review summarizes the mechanism of action of these devices, clinical trial results for efficacy and safety, and clinical use.

Opinion statementAcute brain ischemia is a dynamic process susceptible to multiple modulating factors, such as blood glucose level. During acute ischemic brain injury, hyperglycemia exacerbates multiple deleterious derangements. Timely and sufficient correction of hyperglycemia during acute brain ischemia may limit the brain injury and improve clinical outcomes. The clinical efficacy of such intervention remains to be proven. Although results from animal and clinical observational studies suggest that hyperglycemia during acute brain ischemia may exacerbate the brain injury, there is no evidence from randomized treatment trials that rapid correction of the hyperglycemia improves outcomes. Given the excess effort, cost, and risk involved in rapid and safe correction of hyperglycemia during acute stroke, less aggressive treatments with subcutaneous insulin seem appropriate at this time. Subcutaneous insulin protocols can maintain blood glucose levels below 200 mg/dL a majority of the time in most patients, especially if basal insulin is added. When available, an endocrinology consultant can optimize the acute treatment and help the transition to long-term care. Given the multiple reports linking admission hyperglycemia with symptomatic hemorrhagic conversion of ischemic stroke treated with thrombolytic drugs, it may be best to rapidly lower severe hyperglycemia in such patients. For example, if the admission blood glucose is approximately 300 mg/dL and the patient is a candidate for thrombolytic therapy, consider giving an intravenous bolus of regular insulin 8 units. Somewhat lower or higher insulin doses may be best for lesser or greater hyperglycemia. Such a bolus will start lowering the blood glucose in about 5 min. A temporary continuous intravenous insulin infusion may then be used in most patients to maintain the glucose closer to normal levels (eg, below 180 or 140 mg/dL).