• Pedro Aguilar-Salinas, Guilherme Jose Agnoletto, Brasiliense Leonardo B C LBC http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4220-715X Division of Neurosurgery, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA., Roberta Santos, Manuel F Granja, Douglas Gonsales, Amin Aghaebrahim, Eric Sauvageau, and Ricardo A Hanel.
• Lyerly Neurosurgery, Baptist Neurological Institute, Baptist Health, Jacksonville, Florida, USA.
• J Neurointerv Surg. 2019 Apr 1; 11 (4): 347-351.

BackgroundTreatment of acute cerebrovascular pathology, such as acute ischemic stroke or intracranial aneurysms, presents a challenge if an extracranial or intracranial stent is required; immediate platelet inhibition is vital. To date, there is no standardized approach for antiplatelet inhibition in an acute setting.ObjectiveTo report our preliminary experience and lessons learnt using cangrelor in acute neurointervention.MethodsA single-arm pilot study was performed to assess the safety and efficacy of cangrelor plus aspirin for platelet inhibition in patients who require acute stenting in the setting of neuroendovascular treatment.ResultsEight patients were enrolled between October 2017 and August 2018. Median age was 71 years (53-86). Seven patients were treated in an acute setting according to the stroke protocol at our institution, while one patient was treated for a symptomatic, unruptured aneurysm with flow diversion and coiling. At admission, the median National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score for the patients with stroke was 12.5 (range 2-22.3). Cangrelor was infused and all patients achieved adequate platelet inhibition (<200 PRU (P2Y12 reaction units)). Six of seven patients with ischemic stroke had a carotid stent placed and one had an intracranial stent deployed in the middle cerebral artery. None of the patients experienced intraprocedural thromboembolic complications, intraprocedural in-stent thrombosis, hemorrhagic complications, or stroke within 24 hours after the intervention. The majority of patients (6/8) had a good clinical outcome at discharge (modified Rankin Scale score 0-2).ConclusionsOur findings suggest that cangrelor is a promising alternative in acute stenting for the treatment of cerebrovascular pathology. However, further studies with larger samples are required to accurately elucidate its safety and effectiveness in neuroendovascular procedures.© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2019. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.

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