Clot-Buster Effective for Most Stroke Patients

A study designed to determine whether patients with different risk profiles would respond differently to intra-arterial administration of the clot-busting drug prourokinase has found that the drug was effective for all patients in the trial. The results were presented at the American Heart Association's 26th International Stroke Conference, in Ft. Lauderdale (FL, USA).

Stroke patients eligible for the drug are those who have suffered ischemic strokes. If prourokinase can be administered by a catheter directly to the site of the clot in the brain within six hours from the onset of symptoms, it may dissolve the clot and restore blood flow to the brain. In the study, researchers evaluated a total of 35 variables, including computed tomography (CT) findings, the severity of stroke deficits, and the age of the patient. Called PROACT II, the multicenter study involving 180 patients found that 40% of those treated with prourokinase and 25% of controls had a good neurologic recovery.

"Despite the stratification of patients based on these and other variables, there was no evidence of a difference in treatment effect across risk categories,” said Dr. Lawrence Wechsler, professor of neurology and neurosurgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (PA, USA) and principal investigator. "All PROACT-eligible patients stand to benefit from early intra-arterial prourokinase treatment.”