Functional Outcomes and Complications of Carotid Tandem Lesions After Mechanical Thrombectomy for Treatment of Large-Vessel Occlusion Stroke

BackgroundLarge Vessel Occlusion (LVO) stroke patients with tandem lesions (TLs) have been observed to have worse outcomes when compared to patients with simple isolated intracranial occlusions.ObjectiveTo examine the difference in post-operative functional status at discharge for patients treated with mechanical thrombectomy for an acute LVO stroke based on the presence of a tandem carotid lesion.MethodsThis is a retrospective cohort study of 589 patients presenting within the first 24 hours of stroke onset who underwent mechanical thrombectomy. The primary outcome was functional status quantified by modified Rankin Score (mRS) at time of discharge. The secondary outcomes were presence of hemorrhagic conversion, midline shift >5 cm, malignant cerebral edema, reocclusion, Thrombolysis in Cerebral Infarction Scale (TICI), and discharge location.ResultsPatients with tandem occlusions and those with isolated intracranial lesions had similar baseline demographics. However, in patients with TLs, there was a significantly higher NIH stroke scale at admission and a longer time to recanalization. Modified Rankin Score prior to admission was similar for both groups, but was significantly higher in patients with TLs at discharge. The secondary outcomes were similar for hemorrhagic conversion, discharge to hospice, and a TICI scale of 0, but were significantly worse for patients with TLs for in-hospital mortality, midline shift >5 mm, and malignant cerebral edema. The presence of a tandem lesion predicted a higher modified Rankin Score at discharge in univariate regression modeling (β = .45; <i>P</i>-value = .006).ConclusionThe two groups were similar in baseline characteristics and cardiovascular risk factors, yet patients with tandem carotid lesions experienced more complications during their hospitalization and had greater functional disability at discharge. Patients with a TL had a longer mean time to recanalization, representing a potential explanation for these differences in outcomes.