Acute and Critical Care

Original Articles

Cardiology
Managing symptomatic intermediate or high-risk pulmonary embolism presenting concomitantly with intracranial bleeding: case series and literature review: Pipin Kojodjojo, Keith YC Goh, Chieh Yang Koo, Peter Chang, Philip SS Koh; Received March 31, 2025 Accepted November 14, 2025 Published online March 4, 2026; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4266/acc.001075 [Epub ahead of print]

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Abstract PDF: Background
Managing patients with concomitant intracranial bleeding (ICB) and symptomatic pulmonary embolism (PE) is challenging and there are no guidelines.
Methods
We identified patients with intermediate or high-risk PE and concomitant ICB referred to our institutional PE response teams. A literature review was performed to evaluate the effectiveness and risks of various treatment strategies for this challenging clinical conundrum.
Results
Two patients with subdural hematoma, symptomatic intermediate-high risk PE and deep vein thrombi were identified in our institutions. Both patients were treated with lytic-free mechanical thrombectomy combined with inferior vena cava (IVC) filter implantation. This allowed for an anticoagulation-free period, during which surgical drainage was performed. Anticoagulation was safely started several days after neurosurgery. A literature review identified 148 similar cases. There was significant risk of in-hospital mortality due to PE in patients who were left untreated. Early anticoagulation was associated with elevated risks of hematoma expansion, extracranial bleeding and residual risk of PE mortality. Patients undergoing surgical or lytic-free mechanical thrombectomy all survived to discharge without bleeding complications.
Conclusions
Combining thrombolytic-free mechanical thrombectomy with an IVC filter allows for effective PE treatment and temporary avoidance of anticoagulation whilst patients undergo definitive neurosurgery for concomitant ICB. Such an approach seems safer, less invasive and more clinically effective compared to other strategies reported in the literature.

Neurology
Effectiveness of intravenous thrombolysis in patients with large-vessel occlusion receiving endovascular treatment in South Korea: Min Kim, Ji Sung Lee, Seong-Joon Lee, So Young Park, Jungyun Seo, Ji Man Hong, Hee-Kwon Park, Jae-Kwan Cha, Jeffrey L. Saver, Jin Soo Lee; Acute Crit Care. 2025;40(2):282-292. Published online April 11, 2025; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4266/acc.004248

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2 Web of Science
2 Crossref

Background
The effectiveness of intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (IV tPA) in patients with large-vessel occlusion (LVO) receiving endovascular treatment (EVT) for acute ischemic stroke (AIS) has been questioned. We investigated IV tPA effectiveness in real-world AIS patients, including those with intracranial LVO receiving EVT.
Methods
We identified patients with AIS who presented to hospital with National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale ≥4 within 8 hours of symptom onset from the institutional stroke registry. The association of IV tPA use with effectiveness and safety outcomes was analyzed in overall enrolled AIS patients; LVO patients; and patients treated with EVT. The effect of IV tPA was assessed using multiple logistic regression.
Results
Among the 654 patients meeting study entry criteria, 238 (36.4%) received IV tPA and 416 (63.6%) did not. Multiple logistic regression analysis and shift analysis revealed IV tPA was associated with improved outcomes in overall enrolled AIS population, LVO, and EVT-treated subgroups. Among EVT-treated patients, IV tPA was associated with higher likelihood of ambulatory or better outcome (modified Rankin Scale 0–3) with odds ratio of 1.95 (P=0.03).
Conclusions
In this real-world study, IV tPA use was associated with improved outcomes for patients with AIS, including among LVO patients treated and not treated with EVT, in the contemporary mechanical thrombectomy era.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

SMART-M24: A Prognostic Nomogram for Long-Term Mortality in Acute Ischemic Stroke Beyond 24 H from Symptom Onset
Soo-Hyun Park, Ji Sung Lee, Tae Jung Kim, Mi Sun Oh, Ji-Woo Kim, Kyungbok Lee, Kyung-Ho Yu, Byung-Chul Lee, Byung-Woo Yoon, Sang-Bae Ko
Translational Stroke Research.2025; 16(6): 1975. CrossRef
Knowledge and experience of local emergency care staff on stroke recognition and acute care in the United Arab Emirates
Mohammed Alkuwaiti, Azhar Talal, Emad Masuadi, Ghada Albluwi, Abdulla Alkuwaiti, David Olukolade Alao
International Journal of Emergency Medicine.2025;[Epub] CrossRef

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