ESOC 2021 | Advanced neuroimaging increases the rate of intravenous thrombolysis administration

Georgios Tsivgoulis, MD, PhD, MSc, FESO, FEAN, FAAN, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece, discusses the application of advanced neuroimaging using CT/MR perfusion in thrombolysis-eligible patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS), compared to the conventional use of non-contrast CT scans. In retrospective evaluations, advanced neuroimaging techniques have been shown to increase the rates of intravenous thrombolysis administration in tissue plasminogen activator (tpA) eligible patients. Although current guidelines recommend the use of non-contrast CT scans as the standard of care, Prof. Tsivgoulis believes the use of CT/MR perfusion techniques, especially via RAPID software, would allow for the administration of tpA to a greater number of patients with increased safety. This interview took place at the European Stroke Organisation Conference (ESOC), 2021.