Use of Balloon Guide Catheters During Acute Stroke Thrombectomy

Endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) is commonly performed in patients with acute ischemic stroke and large vessel occlusion. Conventionally, for anterior circulation strokes, a catheter is placed in the internal carotid artery through which a “stentriever” is delivered with or without aspiration. Balloon guide catheters, which can temporarily arrest blood flow during stent retrieval, have been hypothesized to reduce distal emboli and improve reperfusion, but clear evidence is lacking. In a randomized, manufacturer-supported study in China, researchers compared use of a balloon guide catheter with a conventional guide catheter during EVT in 329 patients (median age, 69; 39% women; median National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score, 15) who …