Is thrombectomy always necessary for stroke?

Is thrombectomy always necessary for stroke?

For old or subacute strokes, thrombectomy is neither necessary nor advisable. After an embolus blocks a blood vessel for a period, permanent infarction occurs, and the brain tissue has already lost its function. Opening the vessel will not save this brain tissue (it's useless); in fact, it may cause reperfusion injury or cerebral hemorrhage (harmful). For small vessel (not large vessel) occlusion, medication can be used to open the vessel, and the relatively high-risk thrombectomy surgery is unnecessary.

Ischemic stroke is caused by emboli blocking blood vessels in the brain, leading to brain tissue necrosis. If the blocked vessel is small, there is a greater chance of reopening it through intravenous thrombolysis; however, for larger vessel blockages, the reopening rate of intravenous thrombolysis alone is usually only about 30%, while intra-arterial thrombectomy is the more effective treatment for achieving vascular reopening. Endovascular thrombectomy (IVThrombectomy) is a cutting-edge, minimally invasive interventional treatment. The procedure involves making a small incision (approximately 2mm) in the inner thigh, inserting a novel thrombectomy device into the artery to reach the site of thrombus obstruction, and directly removing the thrombus from the cerebral artery through a stent. This rapidly restores blood flow, salvages brain tissue, and nearly doubles the recanalization rate of occluded large blood vessels, while also nearly doubling the proportion of patients with good prognoses.

The neurointerventional vascular model is printed using soft silicone, with dimensions and inner diameter conforming to real human anatomy. The entire model has a flat structure and includes complete intracranial arteries, a unilateral radial artery, aorta, abdominal aorta, iliac artery, and femoral artery intervention sites. The model includes three common aneurysm and stenosis thrombectomy sites, and both aneurysm and thrombectomy locations can be customized. Thrombectomy can be practiced by placing simulated thrombi.